The first day in the next wave of strike action will be Wednesday 1 February, timed to coincide with TUC day of action aimed at defending our right to strike.There will be a picket from 8-10.30 am at the main entrance to the campus.
Lets make it the biggest picket Heriot-Watt has ever seen. The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute.
The full list strike days announced fall as follows:
- Week 1 – Wednesday 1 February
- Week 2 – Thursday 9 and Friday 10 February
- Week 3 – Tuesday 14, Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 February
Week 4 – Tuesday 21, Wednesday 22 and Thursday 23 February(paused during ACAS)Week 5 – Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 February and Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2 March(paused during ACAS)- (No action week commencing Monday 6 March)
- Week 6 – Wednesday 15 (new date), Thursday 16 and Friday 17 March
- Week 7 – Monday 20, Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 March.
Some of the dates fall into our reading week but there are always plenty of additional tasks landed on our hardworking staff during this week, and professional services work as usual.
Taking Part in Strike Action
You do not have to tell your line manager or anyone else in advance whether you will participate in strike action. Heriot-Watt will circulate details on how and when to record strike action in the ERP system in due course.
Whether you tell your students that you will be on strike is up to you. The purpose of strikes is to create maximum disruption so that the employer returns to the negotiating table with an acceptable offer. Please encourage students to make their views about cancelled lectures known to the Principal. The Student Union supports our action.
We don’t want to strike, we don’t want to lose part of our salary. But we are forced to fight for our pay, pensions and better working conditions. There is a solution but our leadership are unwilling to make a fair offer. They are failing our staff and our students.
The Cost of Striking and Strike Pay
If you think you can’t afford to strike, as yourself whether you can afford the reduction in your pension, the year on year erosion of your pay adjusted for inflation, and all of the extra work which you effectively do for free.
The net cost of striking is often lower than you think and financial support is available from the national fighting fund and the local hardship fund.
Action Short of Strike (ASOS)
We remain in ASOS in the form of working to contract. Members should:
- only fulfil the duties explicitly expressed in your contract
- not undertake voluntary activities
- not cover for absent colleagues
- refuse to reschedule classes missed due to industrial action
- remove materials for classes that would have taken place on strike days from online learning platforms
As things stand there will be no deductions for this form of ASOS at Heriot-Watt.