On your marks…or not: Lecturers threaten to boycott marking

All staff who are members of the University and College union (UCU) are threatening to boycott marking from April 28^th in a row over a lack of sufficient pay rises. This boycott is to go ahead unless a pay deal is agreed before this date.

The union, along with two others, already rejected a 1% pay rise in 2013, and is angered by the fact that some Vice Chancellors have had pay rises of an average of 5%. This rise means that some Vice Chancellors now earn a colossal £400k or more a year. “The employers cannot plead poverty when it comes to staff pay,” says UCU general secretary Sally Hunt “and then award enormous rises to a handful at the top”. The UCU also conducted a survey on staff pay in universities internationally, finding that UK academics earn a shocking 45% less than those in Canada, 34% less than those in the USA and 16% less than the Aussies.

The tactic of boycotting marking was last used by the union in 2006, and involves staff refusing to mark all ‘formal’, officially graded work. This includes exams, coursework, portfolios and dissertations, and so will have a huge impact on finalists in particular if it is to go ahead. As for the staff, they could face having their pay withheld if they go ahead with the boycott, but will be able to claim a maximum of £50 daily from the national strike fund.

Reactions to the potential boycott have been mixed. The Guardian have carried out a survey which concluded with 74% of those who took part in favour of the boycott. Twitter users are taking to the hashtag ‘#MarkMyWork’, which was initially purely against the boycott, to get their opinions heard.

Michael Segalov, future communications officer and infamous student protestor, is in favour of the boycott and has tweeted:

Others, including students and staff, have also shown their support via tweets:

Some, however, remain unconvinced:

Furthermore, the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) describe the boycott as a “damaging course”, arguing that support for industrial action is “dwindling”. “Higer education institutions will certainly be disappointed that the UCU is still threatening a marking boycott,” says one UCEA spokesperson “as this is action that is once again aimed directly at students’ education”.

So, are students being ‘selfish’ by demanding their work be marked, or are they in the right?

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