Strike dates confirmed at University of Leeds

Members of the union announced a rolling programme of industrial action with one-day strikes taking place on Thursday 25 February, Tuesday 2 and Thursday 4 March. There will also be a regional rally and demonstration on either Thursday 4 or Friday 5 March as part of the union's 'Defend jobs, defend education' campaign.

The union said the university now had an opportunity to resolve the dispute by coming back to the negotiating table in good faith. The union made it quite clear that it wants to agree a structured process designed to enable the university to avoid compulsory redundancies.

The union said the record turnout in the ballot demonstrated the support of its members at Leeds and warned it would review its tactics after the first wave of action. It reiterated its hope that a negotiated settlement could be agreed, but warned that further strike action and a possible programme of action short of a strike (ASOS) could not be ruled out.

Leeds UCU president, Professor Malcolm Povey, said: 'UCU continues to believe a negotiated solution is possible and we, once again, call upon the university to return to the bargaining table for further direct talks aimed at avoiding a damaging dispute. While we prefer dialogue to conflict we are determined to protect our members' jobs and the long term future of the university we helped to build.'