University support staff mount three days of strike action over fair pay

Administrators, library staff and IT support workers from the University of Bristol are walking out this week in protest against below-inflation pay increases. Taking action across multiple days and sites, protesters are rallying against a 1.4% pay rise offer, a pay increase they say does not coincide with the increasing cost of living. 

Pay is decided by the joint higher education unions (JNCHES) and the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA), with the UCEA responsible for the pay offer. 

According to trade union Unison, which represents the staff, the 1.4% pay increase amounts to a 3.4% pay cut in real terms, when taking into account rising inflation since July 2025.  

Unequitable pay rises appear to be a constant issue for staff, with protesters claiming they have faced 17 years of unfair salaries. 

This fall in wages sits in contrast with university vice chancellors, as recent figures suggest their average salaries rose by 5% last year. Evelyn Welch, University of Bristol Vice Chancellor earns £312,600, receiving a pay increase of 3% – more than double what has been offered to support staff. 

Protesters are calling for either an increase in pay of at least RPI 3.5% or a flat rate increase of at least £2500.  

I spoke to Chloe Clarke, deputy student admin manager, at the Unison picket outside the Wills Memorial Building on Wednesday. 

‘Our demands as a branch at the University of Bristol are for Evelyn Welch, the VC, to back our cause for those negotiations on this year’s pay to be reopened’. 

“We also want the University of Bristol to lobby the government for financial reform across higher education. The system isn’t working at the minute, it’s a broken system and we’re against the increasing marketisation of university education.” 

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I asked Chloe about her reactions to some of the University of Bristol’s recent development projects, such as its £500 million Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus and new development in Mumbai.  

“I think the messaging we are getting for the university is that there’s not enough money to pay staff fairly. I think its a false statement to say that there is no money anywhere to pay staff, I think it’s where the university thinks its happy to spend its money versus where its not”. 

“We’re covering everything that the university does, but we’re the forgotten workforce behind it all.” 

During the time I was at the picket, lots of locals showed their support by honking car horns and Chloe told me how much support the strike had received from students. They hope the protests will open discussions about staff treatment as well as rising university costs. 

A spokesperson from the University of Bristol said:

The protests are set to continue until Thursday, with a lunchtime rally at the Wills Memorial Building between 12 and 1 tomorrow. Further walkouts will take place on the 10th and 11th of March.