As an industrial relations expert I've studied a lot of industrial disputes & have a few thoughts about this request from UUK. Join me 👇
We might personally be eager to get back to work & end the strikes. This is understandable. But without any reassurances that we will maintain our DB pension, no strike action should be halted in order to return to the negotiating table.
If we use the junior doctors dispute as a recent example of a strike that many seemed destined to succeed & gained huge public support. But their goal was irreparably damaged & undermined by calling off action early, & without concrete contract improvements on the table.
All the solidarity, support & momentum was swept away. We need to heed this & keep up the pressure and continue building momentum.
This strike has demonstrated the leverage power that withdrawing our labour has. We should not allow this important leverage -which has delivered more in 48 hrs than any attempts at talking in the last 4 weeks- to be forfeited by calling off planned action without DB guarantees.
Perfect response from UCU. They'll attend talks they've been requesting for weeks, but action will continue. Unless UUK willing to "re-open the JNC decision made on 23 January" UCU do "not see how the dispute could be resolved"
And so it goes, this is textbook. Despite no offer from UUK to revisit DB decision, Minister for universities calls for strikes to be suspended. We will get more of this. Remember this thread when somebody feeds you the line the Minister is pushing here.
We should fully expect this to be line of attack used by press next week, as they try to paint us as reckless & unreasonable. It’s how the right operate when trying to undermine legitimacy & support for strike action.
We will need to remind them: that until UUK agree to revisit the DB decision any talks are a circus.
