SU President Jake Verity has written an open letter to Vice Chancellor Professor Koen Lamberts regarding industrial action that will see university staff strike for eight days later this month.
In the letter, Verity calls for “open and frank discussions about the current situation, and how it’s affecting students”.
The University and College Union (UCU) announced the strike action after a national ballot of members took place in late October. Staff will be striking between Monday 25 November and Wednesday 4 December over pensions and pay equality.
Students’ Union Council voted “overwhelmingly” to support UCU’s aims, with the Students’ Union Officers releasing a joint statement of support last week.
Verity would like it “to be made clear to our members that we want the strikes to finish as quickly as possible” and that “the best way to do that is to have discussions between our three organisations [UCU, Sheffield Students’ Union and The University of Sheffield]”.
In the letter, Verity also calls for discussions about “plans to recover learning and teaching that will be missed during strikes”, “assessment and feedback deadlines that will follow missed teaching” and “money saved by the University from the strikes and how it should be redistributed.”
Speaking to Forge Press, Verity said: “We know our students are going to be frustrated over the next few weeks, and it’s absolutely critical that they know we are defending their interests and are raising any concerns they have.”
