Anyone else not striking?

[goingpearshaped]

I am not in UCU so not striking. Anyone else? I can sense the divide already between those striking and those not in our dept, I really hate this. Agh, what a mess all round.

See, this is what I don't understand. Why does UCU keep on striking for no gain? Against my better judgement I did speak to a picketer the other day who was convinced that striking would convince our V-C to give all black academics a pay rise. (Knowing our VC he would probably cut everyone's pay to that of black staff and say we now had full equality, ta-da!) Are people really that naive?

Yeah, I don’t get it. Surely the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? I asked a colleague this and he said ‘we have to do something’. But if we know from experience that it won’t work (why would it when twice as many days and more institutions taking part didn’t work last time), why lose your salary for it? Surely you’re making members poorer. Our employers can easily sit out a strike period, nobody is going to jeopardise their own research career by refusing to publish, so the only thing with a bit of bite is a marking boycott. But as others have stated on her, this may result in 100% deductions.

@ghislaine

I read on twitter that UCU is not planning to take any legal action on deductions for ASOS which I thought was interesting. Either their chances of success are low or there's no money to fund it (most likely, seeing as they overran their strike fund last time).

Great, so people will lose even more money then when the inevitable deductions start. Jo Grady is in so deep over her head it’s unbelievable.

Thanks @ehtelp I'd forgotten about that site. Not a great deal of choice, is there?

Just to say I am finding the discussions around workload extremely interesting, and more nuanced and illuminating than what I've seen around UCU and in my own department (i.e. lots of shouting WORLOAD BAD but then zero acknowledgement of the particularities of academic work that make this a difficult nut to crack... lot of hypocrisy too in that some colleagues loudly refuse to take on administrative roles or even reply to student e-mails because WORK-LIFE BALANCE, meaning that these responsibilities then fall upon others who apparently don't need a work-life balance).

Oh yes. A senior colleague once told me that some administrative roles were so important (ie hers) that they were exempt from having 30 or so academic advisees. Pastoral care. Only for the little people.

still in UCU despite their stance on women (my branch is doing good work) and as such, striking.

I am not British and I guess striking means something v different to me.

I don't recognise PPs experience of workload, or perceived luck at an academic job.

My workload is killing me, as well as my very close colleagues. I barely see my kids. I am spending all hours creating security cushions for my postdocs and PhD students, and always highlight to them the "alternative paths". I worry for them. I love research and teaching but corporatisation is killing the university.

I also do resent parents "thanking academics" for not striking - but that s just me... I teach adults and do resent parental interference. I am also super pissed off today, especially at my unionised colleagues who never strike, but rejoice whenever any good outcome comes their way.

I also do resent parents "thanking academics" for not striking

Totally agree, @Marasme but I’m sick of trying to explain to parents we’re not school teachers or childcare …

ultimately, there seems to be so much disparity in workloads (the last 2 years have not been on the "lighter side of normal" for people in my department with 2 burnout sick leaves, and 2 breakdowns in the wider team), working experiences, over a deep misunderstanding of what we do as academics. It feels like a losing battle - yet I will still strike.

i ve heard the usual songs this week of "lazy academics, aren't you happy with your summers off", "students deserved better", "why don't you think about the students" - i was not born priviledged, i have no family wealth or support other than (pensionless) DH and needs my pension as part of longer term life plans. I teach september to september and fit a couple of week of AL over the summer when i still need to provide "remote support" to my dissertation students.

It kills me to train bright hardworking young people who dream of an academic career, which will exploit them and not offer any pension in return for decades of job insecurity. If I don't strike I feel complicit.

If I don't strike I feel complicit.

I do totally get this sentimenet and the idea that one has to be felt to be doing something. But if you end up doing the work anyway in one shape or form (which the majority of academic staff do, bar some of the teaching), then you are surely financially benefitting your employer by foregoing pay? If they are going to impose these conditions on us (and I agree they are often harsh), at the very least, we should get paid our full salary. When we know that 22 days made no difference 2 years ago, what has changed to make us think that 10 days will work now? Altogether, universities have saved hundreds of thousands in wages and we are no better off. I just wonder what it will take for people to say no more strikes, we need a different strategy.

I really understand what you say @GCAndproud. With some colleagues, I think they want to appear "tough", "stick it to the man", but then they go out of their way to mitigate any damage caused by their absence.

In my place things are starting to kick in, with assignments due and questions about the assignment brief and extension requests going unanswered due to staff absence.

I think a rational approach to this from someone who was striking would be: I am taking strike to cause disruption; if a student has performed worse than they should because I was not available, then so be it - this fulfills the goal of causing disruption to the employer by way of fewer 1 or 2:1 degrees being awarded (and hence drop in league tables), complaints from students, reduced student satisfaction and hence drop in USS survey...

I am not saying I agree with this, and in fact I think it is terribly unfair to the students. But in the same way as, say, an airport workers strike is terribly unfair on someone who was going to fly to see their family for the first time in 3 years - but maybe the airport workers are indeed being unfairly treated and doing this is the only way they have to be heard. A strike almost always has "victims" so to speak, and I think people are going to strike, they should be consistent and follow through with it.

Instead, what is likely to happen at my place is that people will inflate grades, turn a blind eye on late days, etc., and colleagues will get to play "tough" while still not risking a iota of their "cool guy" persona with the students. It will almost certainly generate more work for me, as Exams coordinator, as I will be involved in back-and-forth conversations about how far we can bend the rules...

I am so glad I started this thread! So may interesting opinions. Also agree about feeling fed up of parents thanking us for not striking. It's so much more complex than that. As for summers off, ha indeed. I work on a year long PG course, we are marking one cohort's dissertations whilst inducting the new one, there is no give at all. Burnout is high, I have never felt so put upon or disillusioned with academia as I do now. Student demands are higher than ever as are research (high impact papers, case studies and large grants). I know this is universal, I am not special!

@aridapricot

I really understand what you say *@GCAndproud*. With some colleagues, I think they want to appear "tough", "stick it to the man", but then they go out of their way to mitigate any damage caused by their absence.

In my place things are starting to kick in, with assignments due and questions about the assignment brief and extension requests going unanswered due to staff absence.

I think a rational approach to this from someone who was striking would be: I am taking strike to cause disruption; if a student has performed worse than they should because I was not available, then so be it - this fulfills the goal of causing disruption to the employer by way of fewer 1 or 2:1 degrees being awarded (and hence drop in league tables), complaints from students, reduced student satisfaction and hence drop in USS survey...

I am not saying I agree with this, and in fact I think it is terribly unfair to the students. But in the same way as, say, an airport workers strike is terribly unfair on someone who was going to fly to see their family for the first time in 3 years - but maybe the airport workers are indeed being unfairly treated and doing this is the only way they have to be heard. A strike almost always has "victims" so to speak, and I think people are going to strike, they should be consistent and follow through with it.

Instead, what is likely to happen at my place is that people will inflate grades, turn a blind eye on late days, etc., and colleagues will get to play "tough" while still not risking a iota of their "cool guy" persona with the students. It will almost certainly generate more work for me, as Exams coordinator, as I will be involved in back-and-forth conversations about how far we can bend the rules...

I agree with you so hard on this, and the comparison to airport staff is spot-on.

At my place (RG, social science), there's actually very little disruption caused by strikes at all that I can see. A handful of lectures will be cancelled. But some academics still put the lecture slides up for those missed classes. A handful of seminars will be cancelled. But most students can just join a different seminar group in another week/another day. Moreover, I know that many striking colleagues arrange additional office hours for students to mitigate the impacts of the strike.

We have been told that we're not allowed to set assessments which correspond to any missed material so that students don't suffer a detriment.

I had meetings with a few students yesterday and they're actually loving it. In fact, they were a bit miffed that my classes are still going ahead

So if students aren't pissed off, they're not complaining, they're not worried about their grades, and they don't actually see much disruption to their studies, then what's the point?

My DP (RG, STEM) was teaching yesterday and said his students were completely apathetic about the strike - they didn't really understand what it was about (because of the multiple demands) and didn't care/know enough to be bothered one way or the other.

Not in UCU. Not striking. Reasons for non-membership the same as mentioned. Heavily unionised School.

I'd value views on this though... I've received several requests (from colleagues who are striking or who aren't in UCU and therefore not striking but - I am assuming - don't want to cross a picket line / work from campus that day) to 'cover' tasks that would otherwise have been covered by striking academics e.g. setting up for outside speakers etc.

I am giving a polite 'sorry, pre-existing commitments' response but I am incredulous. Surely the point of a strike is to disrupt planned activity? I do have other commitments, so couldn't cover this stuff without moving my own work around. Strike action isn't supposed to translate into more work for non-striking staff is it?!

Would anyone consider taking this further (how?) or giving a more robust response?

PSRB regulated courses if that makes any difference.

Oh wow this is unbelievable. I thought that the greatest scorn from trade unionists was reserved, not for those who simply do not join in a strike, but for those who rush to cover their colleagues' work to avoid disruption.

That said, as suggested by my messages above, I anticipate that I will be asked to fulfill similar demands. I.e. not cover classes per se but rather help everyone (as Exams coordinator) mitigate the disaster caused by unanswered extension requests/student frustration due to staff being absent around assignment deadlines.

I have toyed with sending a response along the lines of "sorry, but even though I have chosen not to join the strike, this doesn't mean I will actively undermine it by mitigating the disruption the strike was supposed to cause". Or if I'm feeling more snarky that day, something like: "I note the profound irony that a strike against excessive workload ends up resulting in more workload for me and others". Trouble is, I'm (apparently) becoming head of department next year and so I don't want to secure myself enemies before I even start.

Can you just ignore those e-mails? It is quite cheeky to make such requests, so if your colleagues have a tiny bit of self-awareness, they won't be inclined to insist. If they do insist, you could say something like "sorry, I was really busy and so I was prioritizing pre-existing commitments" or something along those lines?

For those saying they resent parents thanking those not striking perhaps you don’t realise how much they impact student wellbeing? I say this as a student. I am certainly not apathetic about the strikes. They have disrupted my studies for four years now and I am often effectively teaching myself by online distance learning. Alongside a pandemic. Putting mitigations in place for lost learning is not the gift many may think it is; it is taking away students’ right to refund for lost learning in line with office for students guidelines.

@Okkie, I can very much appreciate the impact on my (adult) students and we do speak and exchange on the topic. However, I have no relationship with their parents, and do not wish to have one.

I am not incapable of compassion, and come from a place were strikes are the norm, and learning from books is also fairly typical. At least my education was free and i am forever grateful for it, as otherwise would not have gone to uni).

The airport workers metaphore above fits well. I fear a future were my health and work capacity will be prematurely erroded by a workload which is insane (i m a fat, inactive, neurotic and anxious mess) , and if I make it to retirement age, I probably won t have enough to support DH and I once we ve helped pay for both of our parents old age, let alone DCs when they are adults. Should I forget this for now and only remember the plight of students? I am sorry students find themselves in a corporatised / monetised education system. It's dreadful. But at the end of the day, it is my job, not martyrdom, and I would do well to remember this more often.

@aridapricot - i really like your answers!

@ThinkingAboutCrumpets

Not in UCU. Not striking. Reasons for non-membership the same as mentioned. Heavily unionised School.

I'd value views on this though... I've received several requests (from colleagues who are striking or who aren't in UCU and therefore not striking but - I am assuming - don't want to cross a picket line / work from campus that day) to 'cover' tasks that would otherwise have been covered by striking academics e.g. setting up for outside speakers etc.

I am giving a polite 'sorry, pre-existing commitments' response but I am incredulous. Surely the point of a strike is to disrupt planned activity? I do have other commitments, so couldn't cover this stuff without moving my own work around. Strike action isn't supposed to translate into more work for non-striking staff is it?!

Would anyone consider taking this further (how?) or giving a more robust response?

PSRB regulated courses if that makes any difference.

Hang on? So STRIKING academics are asking you to cover their work? I don't know how they have the nerve to be honest but I am unsurprised. I'd be tempted to accidentally copy in the whole department to my reply and say 'Oh, I assumed that you were withdrawing your labour. Surely if I do it for you, that undermines your strike?'

This strike is uncoordinated and ineffective, like the ones in 2019-20 due to exceptionally weak leadership of the UCU. Academia is also teeming with middle class wealthy people (eg someone I work with has written extensively about his poverty wages as a GTA in conjunction with the strike but he bought a half million pound house as a newly appointed lecturer, thanks to family help). Many of them can easily take the economic hit of striking and they like the way it makes them look, quite frankly. That's why people aren't making more of a fuss about what the union is asking them to do. How come Sally Hunt got a vote of no confidence straight after what was, objectively speaking, one of the most successful strikes UCU has ever had (not saying much), yet Jo Grady has now racked up 35 days of lost pay for her members over two years with no hint of success and nobody says a peep??

@Okkie

For those saying they resent parents thanking those not striking perhaps you don’t realise how much they impact student wellbeing? I say this as a student. I am certainly not apathetic about the strikes. They have disrupted my studies for four years now and I am often effectively teaching myself by online distance learning. Alongside a pandemic. Putting mitigations in place for lost learning is not the gift many may think it is; it is taking away students’ right to refund for lost learning in line with office for students guidelines.

I am not striking but, with respect, those that are are not doing so to punish the students. The point of strikes is to cause disruption to the universities. Students are collateral damage and that's the only way it is going to work. It is utterly pointless and impossible to have a strike that doesn't affect students in some way because students are the university.

However, I seriously wonder how much this round truly disrupts students. Most staff will not be striking. Many union members are secretly scabbing. In STEM, where you would have many more contact hours than humanities or soc-sci, union membership is very low. In humanities, it is higher but self-guided study is the norm and your contact hours are pretty low. At my institution, attendance is pretty dire anyway but I have seen some students who haven't attended half of their seminars moan on social media about losing education.

I don’t think a couple of sentences on a thread thanking those not striking is akin to parents attempting to build a relationship with anybody here

Another ironic kick in the teeth is that many of those on strike didn’t pay for their learning. We are playing close to £10k a year for this online learning.

I completely sympathise with those with terrible workloads change in pension etc but students are really suffering as a result of the continued strike, particularly under represented groups. It feels like an acrimonious divorce with students as children stuck in the middle. As many have said upthread it makes no sense to keep striking when it does nothing but make you poorer, force students to learn online and enable the uni to top up their pots in unpaid wages.

I’m truly sorry you are feeling the way you are but honestly if you have said this on any other thread many would have suggested you look for alternative employment. I will never be in a position to do any of the things you would like to do such as pay for your parents in later life or adult DCs (which I’m surprised at given your stance on parents making comments on a thread about their DC). I have no pension to speak of and am living from one precarious contract to another to support my studies in an attempt to carve out a better paying career for myself

I don’t need anybody think about my plight, it’s my life. I’m saying striking isn’t working. It honestly feels embarrassing at this point. The funniest part is the course I am on is the pathway to a phd. It’s now very unlikely I will continue with this and enter academia why on earth would I everybody seems to hate it!

I understand @GCAndProud but this is my point - the strikes are not working. Half the students don’t care and see it as a chance to not attend lectures and the other half have to teach themselves. Lecturers I have spoken to just see it as an opportunity to catch up on their workload. By mitigating we can’t even get a refund. What is the logic of doing the same thing for four years and expecting different results?

You’re preaching to the converted, @Okkie, this is a thread for academics who are not striking, mostly not because they are in agreement with pension cuts or worsening conditions but because UCU has been taken over by a clique that prioritises unrelated political goals over an effective strategy and resolution of the dispute.

I have been on strike in the past but left UCU in 2020 because I lost faith in the leadership. They left it way too late to call off the strikes when the pandemic hit and then they ran out of money to support those who sacrificed their wages.

For what it’s worth, many lecturers of the millennial generation have paid for their education. Caring about your children’s welfare is a very common human emotion, so I understand the concerns of both students’ parents and those of university staff who have children or want to have them in the future. And yes, as a profession we are well-paid but the expectations (re excessive working, excellence in teaching, research, public engagement, emotional generosity) are very high. But the romance of academe keeps many attached to a career that may actually not be right for them.

Thanks @aridapricot and @GCAndProud. Helpful responses. Cover is being requested for seemingly 'small' tasks, so I am wondering if I am over-reacting by feeling bemused and irritated.

I think you've hit the nail on the head; it feels like industrial action cosplay.

Even small tasks add up, and why should you be disadvantaged? It totally is cosplay.

I do not think you are over-reacting @ThinkingAboutCrumpets. To me it's more the principle than the actual amount of work asked of you... it's like wanting to appear "tough" on picket lines/on social media with other UCU members, yet at the same time wanting to save face with external speakers and partners, so that you can preserve your relationship with them. I no longer bat an eyelid at these things, but in past strikes I've seen "tough" colleagues (not just from my department, but more generally) demanding that everyone not only religiously observes the strike but refrains from tweeting about anything remotely related to their research because Digital Picket Line or something, and then rushing off on strike days to a conference abroad or a public engagement event with a high-profile partner. Oh but apparently they crossed off their institutional affiliation on their conference name tag so that's ok and that really damages the university.

@okkie - "I will never be in a position to do any of the things you would like to do such as pay for your parents in later life or adult DCs (which I’m surprised at given your stance on parents making comments on a thread about their DC)"

supporting our parents with their healthcare as they developed complex end of life conditions was not part of my life plan - if I lived closer to home (we ve been working around europe moving for my jobs) i would maybe be able to do some myself but hey...

as for supporting children, this does not have to mean having a say or input on the university provision they get (or what their manager does / says to them).

i m not particularly enamoured by UCU or Jo Grady, or what strikes have achieved and cannot swear i ll still be in next year - but I am also not from the school of thought that self-learning is particularly harmful (yet it might be quite angering if you pay for it in England).

Ultimately - turn your disappointment to the people who are put in charge in government, the university management systems who create the crazy workloads and build vanity buildings, not university staff who are making a decision for themselves to strike (or not).