The University and College Union (UCU) is balloting members at the University of Edinburgh on a fresh mandate for strike action that would last for 12 months, due to changes in employment law. The dispute began in February last year when the university announced plans to slash its budget by £140 million, a move the UCU warned could result in the loss of up to 1,800 jobs. UCU members walked out for a total of nine days in 2025 over the plans. In December 2025, management agreed to rule out compulsory redundancies until the end of July 2026. However, UCU claims management has breached that agreement, a charge the university strongly refutes. The union's members narrowly agreed to suspend industrial action during the existing mandate, which lasts until the end of April. The strike on Monday marks the 10th day of action in the dispute, with all UCU members striking on Monday and some also walking out on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. A rally is planned for Wednesday. The university has reserves of more than £3 billion, and its financial accounts for 2024-25 confirmed it was not in deficit.
Separately, workers at Glasgow, Strathclyde and Edinburgh Napier universities are due to take part in a day of strike action on Friday over pay. About 1,000 Unite members will walk out across the three universities, mainly involving non-academic staff such as those in estates, security, libraries and administration. Unite said staff face a "massive real terms pay cut" as a 1.4% pay offer was imposed for 2025/26. The union is seeking a pay rise of at least RPI plus 3% in the current financial year, and unions are also demanding a minimum hourly rate of pay of £15.
More than 500 University of Cambridge workers are striking over two days, demanding a "Cambridge weighting" supplement. Library, museum, finance and IT staff are among members of Unite taking action. In 2024, a pensionable Oxford University weighting of £1,500 per year was introduced, increased to £1,730 in 2025. Cambridge staff received no equivalent, apart from a 2.5% interim payment.
Staff at the University of Aberdeen have walked out in a further 10 days of strike action over cuts. UCU had already staged four days of strikes last month at Aberdeen. The strike days include Tuesday this week, 22-24 April, and 27 April to 1 May. UCU said the walkouts were over issues including refusal to rule out compulsory redundancies. The University of Aberdeen reopened a voluntary severance and early retirement scheme to find £5.5m in savings, and recently confirmed 41 people took up a severance package or early retirement.