Confirmed strike action means this might be the last week of lectures at Glasgow Uni

Rumours of four weeks of UK wide strike action being taken by university lecturers have now been confirmed. After proposed government changes to the current pension scheme in place for the majority of university staff, lecturers across the country have decided to take a stand.

Whilst students have previously been warned that strikes may cause some disruption to lectures, it is becoming clear that the consequences for our timetables, assessment and ultimately our degrees could be far greater than first thought.

Current plans for the strikes have been confirmed by EUSA on their website as beginning on the Thursday 22nd February, and will continue until the end of term if strikers' demands are not met. If this is the case, next week will be the last full week of lectures all year.

Staff are due to strike on the following dates:

Week 1: Thursday 22nd, Friday 23rd February

Week 2: Monday 26th, Tuesday 27th, Wednesday 28th February

Week 3: Monday 5th, Tuesday 6th, Wednesday 7th, Thursday 8th March

Week 4: Monday 12th-Friday 16th March (whole week)

The link to the full University of Glasgow statement is below

61 universities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be affected by strike action, and UCU general secretary Sally Hunt warns that "strike action on this scale has not been seen before on UK campuses."

UESA's Vice President for Education Bobi Archer made this statement in support of the strike: "The Students' Association will be supporting those who are involved with the UCU strike which will take place this semester.

"A university would not exist without staff and it's important we stand in solidarity with them at this crucial time, both for those on strike and the student body."

"We have been working to ensure that the strike will have minimal effect on students' academic experience, including negotiation the postponement of deadlines. We feel that the long term benefits of improving conditions for staff to enable good learning and teaching quality will be worth the action."

School's out

The Tab Glasgow cannot confirm how this will affect various course assessment, although some subject groups have reportedly been told they will only be assessed on material covered in class so far. Other lecturers have assured that slides for the duration of the year's lectures will be made available online, and this should adequately prepare students for end of year assessments on all the material.

A final year history student in the midst of handing in her dissertation has been told by a tutor that a separate local agreement may be created specifically for Glasgow University lecturers: "The strike may yet be called off if an agreement is reached nominally between the two sides, or if a local agreement here at the University of Glasgow is reached."

For further information about the cause, nature and possible impacts of the strike, you can visit the UCU site here or read the full University of Glasgow statement by David Duncan, the University's Chief Operating Officer, here.