We had a deal…or so we were led to believe

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Thank-you to everyone who attended the members’ meeting on Thursday and observed the industrial action on Friday.

We had pickets at Edinburgh and Orkney today, and officers from the HW Student Union visited the Edinburgh campus pickets to show their solidarity. On Monday we hope to have Mark Pendleton, UCU Vice President for Higher Education, at the Edinburgh pickets.

Despite Heriot-Watt having reneged on the agreement reached in return for members standing down the strike during the graduations we have still not heard anything from the university, just what was in the internal communication to all staff.

Why, we do not know, but to be absolutely clear: The email from the university is not an accurate reflection of what was discussed and, crucially, what was understood beyond any doubt to have been agreed by both sets of negotiators. We can only wonder if a decision was subsequently made elsewhere that the deal would not be honoured and that communication would be severed.

The failure of the university to negotiate in good faith is almost unprecedented, and a sign of the desperate and damaging lengths to which the university leadership seem to be willing to go.

The pickets will be back from 8.00 until 11.00am on Monday 10 August and we hope to see as many of you there as possible. Costumes, dogs, children, and journalists most welcome.

Please observe this day of industrial action to show support for our colleagues in LINCS and Scholar who remain under the threat of compulsory redundancy.

Save LINCS petition

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To Principal Richard Williams, the University Executive and Court

The Department of Languages & Intercultural Studies (LINCS) at Heriot-Watt University is under threat to lose a third of its staff, facing a proposal to make 11 full time jobs (FTE) redundant, close two languages (Chinese and German BA/MA programmes) and eliminate numerous intercultural studies courses.

We write to you as a diverse range of scholars, professionals, students, institutional and individual supporters who wish to make clear that these proposed cuts to LINCS are entirely unacceptable.

Since its foundation in 1970 by the Holocaust survivor Henry Prais, LINCS has become an internationally renowned authority in its translation, interpreting and intercultural studies degrees.

At a time when Heriot-Watt brands itself as a global university at every turn – boasting campuses in Dubai, Malaysia, and possibly soon Saudi Arabia – this effective dismantling of support for the study of language and culture at the main Edinburgh campus would spell irreversible reputational damage as well as a strategic catastrophe for the University.

The new University Strategy 2035 emphasises global education, employability, and institutional partnerships among its core strategic priorities. In each of these areas LINCS exhibit unique and irreplaceable expertise and leadership. The University’s proposed cuts are entirely contradictory to these professed values, and this course of action would abandon many of the University’s most crucial resources for its long-term aspirations.

It is undeniable that we stand at a perilous crossroads for language and cultural education across the UK, with technological developments – especially artificial intelligence – posing a variety of challenges. With its longstanding expertise in the field LINCS is well positioned to further integrate these new technologies responsibly and formulate programmes of study that draw upon its existing pedagogical and research strengths while offering students the opportunity to use and think critically about new technologies, particularly artificial intelligence. But the realisation of this future requires a department at full strength, endowed with the capacity for meaningful input regarding its future and, most crucially, the University’s unwavering commitment to linguistic and intercultural diversity.

We demand in the strongest possible terms that no actions are taken to foreclose future learning opportunities for Chinese and German, that course offerings continue to reflect the full range of faculty expertise and student needs, and that compulsory redundancies are barred from consideration.

Sincerely,

Save LINCS signatures

If you wish to add your name please sign at https://forms.gle/rMXdmeye1JHX3Qbk7 and continue to share as wide as you can.

Thank-you all.

Support for Scholar – Scotland’s National Digital Learning Service

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UCU, Unite and UNISON are jointly coordinating an effort to gather notes of endorsement for Scholar, a national digital learning service, used by senior phase learners across Scotland, for over a generation.

Scholar is seeking to secure its long-term future beyond July 2026 and we are inviting support from anyone who recognises Scholar’s value to Scottish education.

You can show your support for Scholar by completing the form at https://sites.google.com/view/scholar-for-scotland/support-scholar

What is Scholar?

Scholar is a not-for-profit online learning platform, supporting schools and colleges across Scotland for 25 years through delivery of over 40 fully SQA curriculum-aligned interactive courses at SCQF Levels 5, 6 and 7 (National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher).

Funded by subscriptions through Scottish Local Authorities, SCIS schools and Further Education Colleges, Scholar works to promote equity of access to digital learning and wider subject choice in the areas of Maths and Sciences, English and Languages, Humanities and Social Sciences.

The impact of Scholar

Scholar is used every day in classrooms and homes across Scotland to support learning, teaching and independent study. With over 9,000 rich interactive activities and formative assessments, teachers use it to introduce topics, reinforce lessons and track progress. The reporting system helps teachers identify where support may be needed and learners are given a clear picture of their own progress.

Scholar engages with teachers, schools and local authorities to ensure important content and platform suggestions are heard and addressed. The team ensures that materials are refreshed annually with any SQA curriculum changes. Scholar is not just a resource but an active learning service that strengthens teaching and empowers learners.

Scholar plays a vital role for those who rely on flexible access to education such as interrupted learners, young carers, learners experiencing anxiety or illness, and those with additional support needs. The structured, accessible format allows learners to engage with the curriculum at a pace and time that works best for them. Peripatetic EAL teachers (English as an Additional Language) make use of Scholar, as one of the few comprehensive, curriculum-aligned ESOL pathways available nationally.

As a credible service, Scholar also collaborates with charities, subject experts, national organisations and contributed significantly to the ‘supported’ resources of Education Scotland’s National e-Learning Offer.

Beyond schools, Scholar is used in colleges to bridge knowledge gaps and complement course delivery. At a university level, Scholar supports Heriot-Watt University’s Maths Gym and Global College with digital resources, to strengthen foundations and ease the transition into Higher Education. Overall, Scholar helps to contribute to Scotland’s widening participation goals, supporting learners, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, to move confidently from school into HE and FE.

With over 130,000 learners and 14,000 teachers with access annually (2024-25 cohort), Scholar has reached over a generation of learners across Scotland since its inception in 1999.

How to show your support

We are gathering notes of endorsement from learners, students, teachers, lecturers, parents, Scholar alumni, employers, national organisations and anyone who recognises Scholar’s value to Scottish education. Whether you used Scholar at school, make use of it in your teaching, benefitted from it in college or university or simply share the values it represents, we would welcome your comments.

Your endorsement will help demonstrate the breadth and depth of support for Scholar and provide vital evidence that it is a valued national service, deserving of a secure long-term future alongside the evolving educational landscape in Scotland.

Please show your support for Scholar.

Thank you

Strike days approved on 7 and 10 August and re-ballot

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Following an online ballot the branch membership have authorised 2 days of strike action during the exam resit and board preparation period in August and notice has been served to the university. The strike days are 7 and 10 August 2026.

We would ask all members to take part. Your colleagues in Scholar and LINCs need your support.

Members should also continue to observe action short of strike and work to contract, refusing to work excess hours or undertake voluntary duties.

Details will follow about the pickets and how to claim from the hardship fund.

Why has this happened?

The university have decided not to honour their side of the agreement reached in June.

The agreement approved by our members was that in return for standing down industrial action during the graduations there would be no compulsory redundancies in LINCS before at least March 2027 and that there having been sufficient VR applications (or redeployment opportunities) there would be no need for compulsory redundancies in Scholar.

After the graduations we were told that the the university have decided not to respect the agreement and are now moving to compulsory redundancies in both LINCS and Scholar. Our negotiators have engaged in good faith so this is an extremely disappointing development. It is almost unheard of for an employer to do this and hugely damaging to industrial relations but regrettably it is how our senior leadership team sometimes behave. We offered to meet with the university last week but the offer was not taken up.

In response to the university’s action our members voted for industrial action via a snap online consultative ballot. It is not a great time of year to catch members who might already be taking a well-earned break, so thank-you to everyone who made time to vote and get us over the threshold in only 3 days.

We would now require an immediate binding commitment from the university that they will not move to CR in Scholar and that they will stick to the agreed timeline in LINCS before we would ask the members to once again call off action. In the meantime, we remain open to meeting with the university.

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

Members meeting

There will be a members’ meeting at which we will discuss the latest developments in the dispute at 1pm on Thursday 6 August. The meeting will be addressed by Dr Mark Pendleton, Vice President UCU.

A Zoom link has been sent to member email accounts. Please try to attend if you can.

Postal re-ballot

Separate to the online ballot, which is now concluded, members are asked to complete and return their postal ballot papers.

With compulsory redundancies still on the table, we are re-balloting to extend our existing mandate for industrial action for a further 12 months. This will take us into the next academic year.

Members will have seen what is already happening in Dubai. Your vote is crucial to help colleagues who still face the threat of compulsory redundancy.

Dispute continues but the remaining strike action for this week is stood down

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At today’s meeting our members voted to stand down the remaining strike days on Wednesday and Thursday of this week, and also to take no further strike action before 31 July as an interim agreement after a proposal for Scholar, LINCS, and research time was received from the university.

For the avoidance of doubt, the dispute remains active and members are asked to continue to observe Action Short of Strike until such time as it is resolved. Members will begin to receive ballot papers for a re-ballot from this weekend. This enable us to extend our mandate. Please use your vote and give the branch the leverage it needs to translate this interim agreement into a firm and binding offer which is sufficient to end the dispute.

Thank-you to all members who were able to attend the meeting today and vote at such short notice, thank-you to all those whose commitment to strike action and attending the picket lines have got us here, and thank-you to the branch negotiators and committee for all the time and effort they have put in.

There will be more to share as we move into the next phase and negotiations continue. Please keep and eye and your emails and don’t forget to return your re-ballot papers when they arrive so that we can extend the mandate for further industrial action if necessary.

Changes to planned strike action for week commencing 15 June 2026

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A revised offer has been received from the University and at a well attended meeting  members voted to reduce the number of strike days next week. The planned strike action for Monday, Tuesday, and Friday has been called off. Strike action on Wednesday 17 and Thursday 18 will go ahead as planned.

The offer represents a shift in the university’s position on some of the issues but it does not unconditionally remove the threat of compulsory redundancies faced by staff in LINCS and Scholar and is therefore not sufficient to consider the dispute resolved with an end to industrial action.

Members mandated the branch negotiators to seek further talks with the university at the beginning of the week and the branch have written to the university to suggest this. We will let members know if any progress is made. Please keep an eye on your email for updates and any notifications of short notice members’ meetings.

Action Short of Strike

Action Short of Strike continues indefinitely while the dispute remains unresolved. ASOS or Working to contract is a form of industrial action. As long as work not undertaken is not part of your contractual obligation the employer as no legal basis for docking pay. For example, if you do not attend a purely voluntary event you cannot lose pay.

A useful FAQ guide to ASOS can be found at https://www.ucu.org.uk/article/13289/Taking-action-short-of-a-strike-ASOS

 

Complete the UCU Workload Survey 2026 for a chance to win £50 in vouchers

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The UCU Workload Survey 2026 will close on 26 June 2026. UCU are conducting this survey to investigate workloads in universities, colleges, prison education and adult education. It is known that many workers in these sectors are experiencing excessive demands which is contributing to stress and affecting their health.

Please take a few moments to let UCU know about your experiences at Heriot-Watt University via the form at https://yoursay.ucu.org.uk/s3/Workload-survey-2026 and encourage your colleagues to complete it too.

The survey is open to members and non-members and the responses will help build an accurate picture of the workload challenges that employees face. The identity of individuals will be protected and any questions which the respondent prefers not to answer can be skipped. The data will be used to support local and national campaigns and collective bargaining. UCU members will be able to log in and view the reports once the analysis is complete and branch level break-downs will be possible.

Strike action on Thursday 14 May

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A reminder that we are taking strike action on Thursday 14 May in support of staff in  Scholar and LINCS who are still under threat of compulsory redundancy.

Edinburgh based colleagues are asked to join our picket line by the Riccarton Mains Road roundabout between 07:30 and 11:00. Please come early. If you are driving you can use either of the Park and Ride or the car park nearest the hotel.

We need as many of you as possible to be there on Thursday to show the university leadership your commitment to protecting the educational provision at Heriot-Watt. Bring your own placards, costumes, snacks, a chair to sit on, pink hats and waterproofs in case of rain.

If you only strike for one day – make it the 14th May. The pickets are friendly, collegial and you may make some of the best friends of your life on the pickets – I know I have. Strike not only to protect your jobs, but your colleague’s and friends jobs. Please take some time to show your colleagues that you stand with them in their time of need.

Dispute resolution process

We are in dispute over 3 key issues:

  1. The failure to rule out compulsory redundancies as a result of ‘rightsizing’
  2. the failure to rule out compulsory redundancies in Scholar
  3. Proposed changes to research time

In the last round of industrial action we cancelled the first two days of strike action to enable the discussions to continue and we tabled a proposal for financial stability without the need for compulsory redundancies. Our proposal was flatly rejected by the university without a meeting.

We have since had two key meetings.

Two of your negotiators met with the Deputy Principal for Research and Innovation and the Deputy Principal of Education and Student life to start a shared statement on research time. We will meet again to try and finalise a draft of this statement.

In a dispute resolution meeting on Monday the university had still not moved from their position on compulsory redundancies in Scholar and LINCS. Discussions are set to  continue after both parties take the time to reflect on the discussion.

Members have already twice rejected the proposal from the university and in absence of an improved offer the strike will now go ahead.

Declaring strike action

Members may wish to inform students of potential disruption to lectures and tutorials but you have no obligation to tell your line manager or the university that you plan to strike before the action takes place.

When asked after any strike days if you took part in industrial action you must declare truthfully whether you did. It is important too for demonstrating the strength of the action to management.

Solidarity

We have received the message below from the Glasgow Branch of the NUJ – who remind us that no trade union member ever stands alone:

NUJ Glasgow branch stands in solidarity with UCU members on strike at Heriot-Watt University. Our union’s own student members at Heriot-Watt depend on quality teaching and lecturers’ willingness to stand up to defend it. Management must listen to the union’s demands and rule out compulsory redundancies without delay.

Should I stay or should I go now: USS pensions part year revaluation

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USS pensions are revalued annually to provide for inflation. However, if you leave part way through a year, either by exiting the membership, a change of employment, redundancy, or retirement, then rule 10 part year revaluation is applied. This can affect the amount of income you receive in retirement relative to what you would have received had your pension been revalued in the normal way.

The branch Pensions rep will giving a short talk on the USS Pensions Rule 10 part year revaluation on Thursday 21 May from 1:00 to 1:30pm. This session is to look at how the scheme functions, how this rule is applied and how it effect varies year on year, and throughout the year.

This is not a financial advice session but it may be of interest to members who are considering deferring or retiring in the next few years. If you are considering major financial decisions you should seek the advice of a Financial Advisor.

This session is open to members and non-members alike. Please let any colleagues who you think might be interested know about it. We look forward to seeing you there.

How to join the meeting

If you are logged in via HWU Single Sign-On you will be able to join the Teams meeting at Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams. Please check for an email from the branch if you need the Meeting ID and Passcode or the number to Dial in by phone.

 

Final day of strike action…for now?

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Thank-you to all those who made it to the pickets today for the final day in this round of strike action. It was another excellent turnout. We will call a members’ meeting soon to discuss options for further action to defend jobs over the summer and into the new session. Please try to attend once a date is fixed and shared. Your negotiators will be meeting with management in the meantime and we remain optimistic that they can find a way forward. The next meeting will be on 8 April and we will feed back.

UCU Joint Rally

After the pickets many of the branch members made their way to Bristo Square for a joint rally with the University of Edinburgh branch of UCU. Students from Heriot-Watt joined speakers from UoE, UCU, Unison, STUC, and spoke passionately about the need to defend higher education as a public good. What is happening at Heriot-Watt is happening elsewhere and our struggle is part of a wider campaign to preserve education.

Gathering data about strike action

Following concerns raised by members about the new method for reporting strike action to a strict deadline (which is not in itself enforceable in law) we have written to the university Data Protection Officer and HR. In tracking the impact of industrial action on teaching we feel that there is potential for lists to be generated by the app creating what could be deemed to be a blacklist. You can read the letter and we will share any updates as we have them.

Action Short of Strike

Tomorrow will likely to be a very busy day for those of us who are not on leave but please remember that we are working to contract as Action Short of Strike.  Don’t give management your time for nothing by working more than your contracted working hours.

Day 8 on the pickets

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Another huge thank you to all those who are coming to the pickets and striking from elsewhere. We had another excellent Edinburgh turnout today including a new special guest – Eduphant the Scholiphant.

Wednesday will be the last of the current strike days. We will be hosting an Easter Egg hunt on the pickets and then we will move to Bristo Square for a joint rally with University of Edinburgh UCU from midday on.

Lets have a big turnout for both.

Action Short of Strike (ASOS)

After this block of strike action ends we return to ASOS. Broadly speaking this means not undertaking voluntary activities or working beyond your contracted hours. Detailed information about working to contract can be found in the FAQs for members on taking action short of a strike. The sector runs on unpaid labour so it is critical that members continue to observe ASOS to help keep the pressure up.

Negotiations

Your negotiators will next meet with University management on 8 April and we will keep you up-to-date on any developments. One aspect we will be putting to management is the accuracy of the data they are using to justify the cuts.

Day 7 and a look at data

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Thank you to the members who were striking today, including those who picketed – a student kindly took the main photo and we’re waiting for that to be sent through – keep an eye on our social media. Today we were joined today by SolidariCAT and Frogoodness Sake. Names to be confirmed.

We are back out tomorrow, and on Wednesday. After the pickets on Wednesday we will be joining friends and comrades from the University of Edinburgh for joint rally at midday in Bristo Square.

After the pickets, we will be joining our friends and comrades at University of Edinburgh UCU at midday in Bristo Square for a joint rally. Please come along and show your support for our mighty branch!

About data

Data has been at the centre of so much of this dispute – staff student ratios, student numbers on courses and programmes, Scholar’s income, research capacity and income.

We have seen data used in a variety of ways to make a range of arguments for the Portfolio Review, Rightsizing and the proposals for Scholar.

Data has been used by the university to under-represent the density of UCU members across the eligible staff groups.

Data has been used to present a misleading picture of the staff student ratio in LINCS to justify Rightsizing cuts. You will have seen the university’s latest update on industrial action sent last Thursday where they aim to ‘provide some insights’ regarding LINCS staffing. The university insists on 6 further FTE to be cut in LINCS via VR/CR on the basis that 33.9 FTE academic staff work in LINCS. However, LINCS only has 28.5 FTE academic staff – this is a discrepancy of 5.4 FTE. We will be asking the university to lay open their SSR calculation method as provided insights so far vary greatly and ignore that one size does not fit all and conference interpreting cannot be taught in a lecture hall.

The data about Scholar paints a partial picture. It totally neglects the surplus that Scholar has generated for Heriot-Watt over most of its 25+ years of its existence, its work for other parts of the university, and its role in student recruitment. There was a small (compared to some other areas of operation at the university) loss in 2024-25. Heriot-Watt have been sitting on their hands, turning down income and refusing to allow staff to find ways to make it more sustainable while they play chicken with the Scottish Government and subscribers from Scottish Local Authorities, SCIS schools, and Further Education Colleges over funding going forward.

Data has also been a matter of concern with the new app developed by the university to record strike days. Many of you have been in touch worried about the privacy and use of this sensitive data. Your negotiators have shared these concerns with the human resources team. On 20 March we asked to see the Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) consistent with the ICO guidance on how a DPIA should be conducted. We hoped receive this by close of business on 24 March so that we could reassure members. When we finally received it on Friday 27 March it had been back-dated to commence 23 March. The committee is reviewing this and will share more detailed feedback with the university and its members today or tomorrow.

We will all be back on the Edinburgh pickets tomorrow from 8.00 am. Bring yourself, your placards, your puppies, your baked goods! Full solidarity with our members striking in Orkney and the Borders – you are stars.