Staff at the University of Nottingham are set to go on strike for two months and begin a marking boycott in a dramatic escalation of their campaign against planned job cuts at the institution.
Nottingham has announced a major transformation plan that will see it shed 608 jobs, with 2,700 staff put at risk, on top of 350 roles cut from the institution last year – one of the most severe restructures in the sector during its current financial crisis.
The university has indicated that without such cuts, it would run out of money by 2031, and the announcement comes after it reported an £85 million deficit in its most recent financial accounts.
On 20 May the university’s UCU branch said it will take 61 days of strike action from Monday 1 June to Friday 31 July, on top of a pre-scheduled strike day in May.
The union has also begun a marking and assessment boycott, which will see its members refuse to carry out all assessment duties, potentially delaying student graduations planned for this summer.
