Lecturers demand "inflation busting" 8% gross pay rise

The Universities and Colleges Union (UCU) has announced that it plans to push ahead with its demand for an eight per cent increase in lecturers' pay.

A UCU spokesperson said that the union: “will press ahead with demands for a rise equivalent to the Retail Price Index plus five per cent, or an eight per cent increase, whichever is higher.”

The Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) has responded to the demand stating that it considers the level of increase to be “wholly unrealistic and certainly unaffordable, without considering the impact on jobs.”

The UCEA feels that the claim does not take into account the current economic climate, or recent pay increases.

Earlier this year, higher education academics received a pay increase as a result of agreements made one year ago between the unions and the employers.

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt said: “Nobody can refute that staff in higher education work extremely hard or that they deserve to be properly rewarded. For too long university employers held down staff pay rises.

“Recent increases have gone some way to righting that wrong, but there is still a long way to go. UCU members are determined to defend the value of the pay rises they have won and we will be submitting our claim as normal.

"We found recent inflammatory comments from some universities seeking to hold down the pay of their staff as disappointing.

"As the largest union in the sector, we expect our claim to be taken seriously and properly considered by the employers’ body.”

The UCEA referred to the recent annual survey of hours and earnings to show that higher education academics’ pay is significantly more than other professionals, even without the eight per cent pay increase from the previous financial year.

“As a result of the 2006-09 pay agreement, HE staff have enjoyed some of the best pay increases across public services and the private sector: in excess of 30 per cent since 2001,” a UCEA spokesperson said.

The UCU plans to submit the claim by the end of 2008, even though some universities have already suggested they would be “lucky to get a zero percent pay rise next year,” according to a UCU press statement.

The UCU represents over 120,000 staff at universities across the UK.

A representative of UCU Scotland said that no industrial action has been planned if the claim gets rejected.