Unions protest over delay to pay rises at Sheffield Hallam University

Trade union members held a demonstration outside the Owen Building today  in protest of delays to planned staff pay increases at Sheffield Hallam University.

Around a dozen union protestors gathered outside at 12pm today, waving flags and chanting. The group included members from a handful of unions, including general unions: Unison, GMB, Unite as well as the University and Colleges Union (UCU).

Last month, Sheffield Hallam University announced last month that this year’s minimum staff pay award of 2.5 per cent would be delayed until July 2025 and payments would not be backdated.

Joe Wheatley, regional organiser for the GMB Union, told The Sheffield Tab that he viewed the decision as “wage theft”.

“We want the university to immediately implement the pay award once it’s agreed, because right now what they’re saying is they’re not going to implement a pay award

“And then to add insult to injury, they’ve said that they’re not going to backdate it. That’s effectively £1,200 out of working people’s pockets – so we want that money back.”

He also urged the university to allow unions “a proper seat around the table” for budget setting and a “more collaborative discussion around the university’s future”.

“We want to be involved in those consultations because we want to see an end to ceaseless voluntary redundancy schemes that seem to come in year in, year out.”

Approximately 140 academic staff have taken a voluntary severance as part of a scheme that launched in December 2023. A further cut to 400 professional service staff roles was announced in May this year.

Dan Bye, the Sheffield Hallam branch secretary for UNISON, also urged the university to “look seriously” at the decision to not offer to backdate payments.

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He said: “It’s money that people would have had that they now won’t see at all, and for the lowest paid in this university, that’s a big impact, but also for others up and down the pay grades.

“So we want them to commit to paying. That’s not an ongoing payment, it’s a one-off – and that would benefit people immensely.”

Sheffield Hallam has been experiencing an extended period of financial difficulty. The university has been in a financial deficit for the last several years.

In recent years, Sheffield Hallam has committed over £200 million in capital expenditure on projects in Sheffield, and has began building a brand new campus in London as part of efforts to attract more international students.

Joe Wheatley said: “It’s not going to benefit students here. It’s not going to benefit the people of Sheffield. And so for us, it’s a colossal waste of time and money.

“We want the university to start making better choices for the people who are delivering for us here at Sheffield Hallam and in our communities.”

A spokesperson for Sheffield Hallam University told The Sheffield Tab: “Like all universities, we are having to make a number of tough decisions due to the well documented financial challenges being faced across the higher education sector.

“One of these will be to implement the annual nationally negotiated pay award for staff later than in previous years, which will help us to reduce costs significantly and protect more jobs. Many other universities have had to take a similar decision due to the sector-wide squeeze on funding.

“This is not a decision we’ve taken lightly. It is part of a clear plan to reduce costs and grow income to help us towards a more sustainable financial future, where we can continue to be one of the UK’s most popular universities.”

Sheffield Hallam’s financial situation mirrors similar challenges faced throughout higher education. Last week, a report by the Office for Students revealed that almost three quarters of UK universities are facing severe financial headwinds.

A number of other universities have delayed pay rises including the University of Kent, Cardiff Metropolitan University and the University of Worcester.

The protest today comes after members of the UCU at the University of Sheffield passed a no confidence motion in university leadership in a vote last week.