THE University and College Union (UCU) has slammed the head of Winchester University for threatening a 100 per cent pay reduction for staff refusing to mark until their salaries improve.

UCU 'named and shamed' vice chancellor Sarah Greer on Twitter for supporting the withdrawal of pay for lecturers not upholding their contract through strikes or marking boycotts.

The University of Winchester is one of 12 universities threatening to cut pay for the whole of the marking assessment boycott (MAB).

The union shared the post with the line: “Our union won’t stand for this punitive behaviour and we’re ready to hit back.”

Winchester UCU re-tweeted the image with the caption: “We are frankly shocked how vindictive our management currently is.”

READ MORE: Winchester University students demand pay for staff from management

Branch secretary Simon Boxley said: “With sadness, we have decided to withdraw just a small proportion of our labour, by setting aside our marking until some progress can be made on pay, workloads and the zero-hours contracts that shame our university. It has been a real shock to both staff and students to see our vice chancellor’s punitive overreaction.”

UCU members will not mark students’ work until employers return to talk about an improved pay offer.

The move for universities to start withholding pay was guided by the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA).

Chief executive Raj Jethwa said: “It is disheartening that UCU continues to try and push its members to disrupt students. The prolonged industrial action has been isolated and low impact, so it’s disappointing that UCU is now attempting a Marking and Assessment Boycott (MAB) at this important time for students during the academic year. 

SEE ALSO: 'It's not right' - dad speaks out after autistic boy refused place at special school
"It is simply untrue that higher education employers withholding pay for not fulfilling contracts are “intimidating threats”. Policies on withholding pay are the opposite: clear and factual, communicated to staff, and aimed at protecting students.

"HE institutions respect employees’ right to take lawful industrial action and, in turn, UCU needs to respect the employers' right to withhold pay for not fulfilling contracts."

Hampshire Chronicle:

Student campaigner, Eli Jones, 20, said: “It’s deeply important that it is made clear to students and the public that this decision by management should not be met with unaccountability. It is not a necessary or measured response to the situation, and the far more sensible reactions of other universities to the marking and assessment boycott make that clear.

“It’s a cruel and unprecedented response to this lawful action on the part of struggling staff who have been placed at the margins of the university’s scope of priorities as a result of the demands of shareholders for higher margins of profit.”

Boycotting lecturers were encouraged by the recent statement of support from Winchester’s Student Union. UCU has asked Sarah Greer to reconsider her position and she has refused.

A University of Winchester spokesperson said: “This is a national dispute, and the University of Winchester is adopting the national position on the marking and assessment boycott. We anticipate only a small minority of UCU members will participate in this action, so most students will be unaffected. It is disappointing that UCU is trying to take industrial action which targets those students who have already had to face disruption during the pandemic.  

“Our priority over the coming months will be to ensure that any student who faces a delay in receiving their marks will still be able to progress to the next year or graduate if they meet the requirements of their course.    

“Despite the financial challenges facing the sector, with tuition fees frozen for many years and costs rising significantly, we have already implemented the nationally agreed 8% uplift in pay for those on the lowest points of the pay scale and a 5% pay increase for all other members of staff on the national pay framework. This has been backdated to February and is in addition to the annual increments which are awarded automatically to the pay of staff eligible for them, which amount to a further 2-3% per annum.”