UNION members from the University of South Wales joined a UK-wide strike calling for better pay and conditions.

More than 70,000 staff at 150 universities across the UK begin a three-day strike on Thursday, November 24.

Staff members across four campuses from the University of South Wales joined the picket lines after a ballot to strike over pay and working conditions last month.

“The reason we’re striking as lecturers and librarians at the university is because over the last, particularly the last 10 years, we’ve seen a real reduction in the quality of our working lives,” said Rachel Stubley, a senior lecturer in post-compulsory education who has taught 20 years at university.

The senior lecturer, who attended the picket line in Newport, said there have been increased redundancies which lead to an increase in workloads for existing lecturers.

South Wales Argus:

Rachel Stubley

“When I first started, we had a good, big team of experienced senior lecturers which meant that if someone was off sick, it was not too bad,” she added. “There were enough people to cover.”

Speaking of the change in working conditions, she said: “There’s no one to cover if you’re sick because we’ve already got the minimal possible staffing. Our workloads have hugely increased.”

There were picket lines at the Newport, Glyntaff, Treforest and Atrium campuses from the University of South Wales on Thursday and Friday, with further action being held on Wednesday, November 30.

Last month, the University and College Union (UCU) balloted their members on pay and condition, saying employers had offered a pay rise of just three per cent following “over a decade of below inflation pay awards”.

According to a report by UCU, university and college staff did two days of unpaid work every week. Eight-seven per cent of university staff said their workload had increased over the past three years.

South Wales Argus:

“I think it’s always an unspoken thing that your working contract - you’re always going to work over that contract,” said Josie Rees, a senior lecturer who has taught for four years at the university. “Teachers are working 60, maybe 70 hours a week. So that’s a significant portion of their working contracts.”

“We teach in the day, and we teach in the evenings as well. So often we could start about 7.30am and then we’re working through to 7.30pm or 8pm.”

UCU also demand to “end the use of insecure contracts”. Ms Stubley said there had been more teachers on “fractional contracts” over the years, where some of them only work three days a week.

Raj Jethwa, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) said there was disappointment across the sector at the decision of the strike action.

“Any threats of industrial action will do nothing to support students, staff or the many HE institutions working hard to avoid redundancies or maintain staffing levels, having delivered the August pay uplift," he said.