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UCU says bosses' pay increases are source of ridicule for universities

15 March 2010

UCU today said that the handsome rewards enjoyed by vice-chancellors were in stark contrast to the pay rises their staff had to fight for and are a source of ridicule for the higher education sector.

The union said that promises of restraint 12 months ago had been broken and it was no surprise that staff had little confidence in bosses who were now telling them their jobs are at risk to balance the books.
 
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'The pay rises senior staff, in particular vice-chancellors, have enjoyed in recent years have been a constant source of ridicule for higher education. There is no transparency or justification for the arbitrary, and usually enormous, rises they receive.
 
'Those at the top hide behind the clandestine world of remuneration committees as an excuse for their massive salaries, whilst the majority of staff have to drag the employers kicking and screaming to agree any sort of pay increase.
 
'With such a history of snouts in the trough, it should not come as a surprise that staff have little faith in their vice-chancellors when they say jobs have to go to balance the books.'
 
The union was responding to the findings of an investigation by the Guardian newspaper into senior pay at British universities.
 
On 19 March 2009 Jocelyn Prudence, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association, said: 'With a very different outlook ahead, we would not expect to see this trend continue. Stability and sustainability of institutions remain of paramount importance during this time of economic uncertainty.'
Last updated: 11 December 2015

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