Strikes at the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam are set to go ahead, after members of the University and College Union (UCU) have been balloted to take strike action.
Nationwide ballots opened on the 20th of October across 137 institutions, including the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University. If successful, the UCU will support UK-wide strike action demanding a national agreement to counter redundancies, fair pay and new higher education funding settlements.
Other unions, such as Unite, Unison, and EIS, will also ballot their members in a coordinated effort to move action with their fellow campus unions.
As of the 22nd of October, the Sheffield Branch of the UCU confirmed that industrial action will begin on the 17th of November for four consecutive weeks. This follows a 79.9% affirmative vote towards taking action from the branch’s members.
This came after the university’s management made further plans to restructure the staffing in schools, including Chemistry, Civil Engineering, and East Asian Studies, and across all faculties.
The 2024/2025 academic year saw strike action planned for May 2025, which was averted by conversations with and a final offer from the University of Sheffield. The offer included a commitment to no involuntary redundancies before the 31st of December 2025 and a dedication to staff consultations over any organisational change.
Speaking with BBC South Yorkshire, a spokesperson from the University of Sheffield said: “We stand by our commitment to make no compulsory redundancies this calendar year and will continue to work with trade unions to avoid them wherever possible in the future as the university adapts to the pressures facing the higher education sector.”
UCU communications have argued the university could take a more ‘measured approach’ to financial challenges, claiming that “there is not a strong financial argument behind pursuing… compulsory redundancies.”
University financial accounts show evidence of a £6 million surplus in the budget.
Meanwhile, Sheffield Hallam University has refused to rule out compulsory redundancies, despite ‘slashing’ jobs in 2024, a UCU spokesperson said.
Hallam leadership recently defended its decision to spend £140 million on a new campus, as well as earmarking a controversial new London campus.
“The cuts are being driven by the university’s decision to plough more than £200m into major building projects, while announcing further budget reductions of £28m for 2025-26.” said a UCU spokesperson.
If national strikes go ahead, the University of Sheffield claims that the majority of staff and students will remain unaffected, and they will do everything they can to minimise the potential impact.
However, with four weeks of localised action in November, the University of Sheffield has yet to release a statement on impact.
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