Industrial action at UCL, 21–25 March 2022

The national University and College Union (UCU) has announced that industrial action will take place in a number of universities across the UK from 21–25 March to support a dispute about pay and pensions. At UCL, staff will be striking over pay with five days of strike action, alongside a period of continuous ‘action short of strike’ (ASoS). UCU has met all the legal requirements for calling lawful industrial action. Not all UCL staff are members of the union and, for many students, there will be little or no impact from the strike or ASoS.   

You can find out more about what this means for you below.   

When will the industrial action take place? 

• Strike action will take place on Monday 21 March–Friday 25 March 
• Action short of strike is planned to run continuously, starting on 1 December 2021 and finishing no later than 3 May 2022   

What does strike action mean?    

Strike action is when staff refuse to work. At universities, this includes not doing any work-related activity, such as teaching students, marking coursework, undertaking research, attending meetings, sending emails related to work and carrying out administrative tasks. It also includes not preparing for work scheduled after the member returns from strike.   

Striking staff may create a picket line by standing outside their workplace to tell people why they are taking part in industrial action and ask them not to cross the line.    

What is action short of strike (ASoS)?    

Action short of strike is when staff take other action, such as limiting some work-related activities. UCU has confirmed that the planned action short of strike will consist of staff only working their contracted hours and duties and not volunteering to do more.    

What does this mean for me?    

It is difficult to predict the impact of this period of industrial action.     

On the five strike days, your classes and lectures could be cancelled. You may also find that libraries, offices and support services are closed or not fully staffed and so opening times and services might change at short notice. When you are on campus, you may see picket lines made up of striking staff outside UCL buildings. They may be handing out information and they may ask you not to cross their picket line.    

Striking staff on picket lines are not allowed to prevent students or any staff who are not taking part in the strike from coming onto campus or entering any UCL buildings. Although picket lines can sometimes appear intimidating, it is important to remember that the staff on strike have no grievance with you, their students, and they will fully respect your right to go about your business as usual. If you feel at all intimidated by picketers, please inform UCL Security by calling 222 from a UCL phone or +44 (0)20 7679 2222 from a mobile. Additionally, please visit Report and Support to report any inappropriate behaviour.  

How can you find out whether your classes are affected?   

Striking staff do not have to tell UCL in advance of their intention to strike, but your department will try to inform you about changes to the teaching schedule through the usual channels, i.e. email and Moodle.   

Throughout the period of action, you should:   

• Keep a close eye on your UCL emails and look out for Moodle page announcements.

• Stay informed by following the links in this update and looking out for announcements in the media.   

What support is available if I miss out on teaching due to staff taking part in industrial action? 

UCL will try to minimise the disruption to your learning as much as possible. We are working with departments to ensure adequate support is made available for you to meet your learning outcomes where your teaching is affected by industrial action.  

Further information and support   

UCL is committed to supporting students during this period, with a range of services available. A more detailed list of FAQs can be found on the UCL Students website.   

Please contact student-industrialaction@ucl.ac.uk if you have further questions that cannot be answered by your department.   

If you are worried about the impact industrial action might have on your mental health and wellbeing, UCL's Support and Wellbeing team provides a safe, confidential and non-judgemental space for you to discuss any issues that concern or affect you.    

To find out more and get in touch, please visit the Support and Wellbeing webpages or contact us through askUCL.   

You can also find out what Students’ Union UCL is doing to support students during this period of industrial action on their website.