Staff at two Glasgow universities to go on strike this month - as students return

Support staff at two Glasgow universities are set to strike over pay, a union has announced.

The University of Glasgow, alongside Glasgow Caledonian University, will see members of staff in the Unison  strike union strike over five days.

The industrial strike action is set to take place from 19 to 21 September and 3 to 4 October, as many students return to university for the start of term.

The union said about 1,100 staff would take action including cleaners, library workers, IT support staff and security officers. University lecturers are not involved in the dispute.

Lorcan Mullen, Unison Scotland’s head of higher and further education, said that current conditions ‘hurt low-paid staff’ as the cost of living crisis continues.

He said: "The pay inequalities in this largely publicly-funded sector are obscene.

"UCEA (The Universities and Colleges employers association), the Scottish government, individual universities and sector leaders have a moral responsibility to act with urgency and seriousness on the cost-of-living crisis in Scotland’s universities."

In a previous statement, the UCEA said it ‘had done its best to support staff in very difficult circumstances.’

Previous strike action saw employers implement a 9 per cent pay rise for staff on the lowest incomes.

Unison warns that other universities across Scotland may join the strike action later in the autumn.

Hundreds of Unison members at the University of Dundee will also strike for two weeks beginning on Monday 19 September in a separate strike over pension provision.