University of Sussex faces ignominy of being shunned by academic community

Members at Sussex are to be balloted over the implementation of the ultimate sanction.
 
The result of the ballot is expected in a fortnight. If members vote for the boycott it will go to a national committee for approval in June.
 
In the meantime, UCU members at Sussex have voted overwhelmingly for a rolling programme of targeted industrial action by both academic and academic-related staff aimed at fundamentally disrupting the administration of examination boards.
 
The exact details of the action are still being finalised. The news of the latest disruptions at Sussex comes on the back of strikes in March and May. The university has also been hit by high-profile student protests in support of staff. The beleaguered institution is looking to axe 112 staff but is refusing to speak to the trade unions about a resolution of the dispute, even through the arbitration service ACAS.
 
If the boycott is approved and the issues at Sussex are not resolved, the union would implement the boycott from 1 September. An academic boycott of Sussex would involve UCU calling on the academic community to shun Sussex through a host of measures, which may include:

• non-attendance, speaking at or organising academic or other conferences at Sussex
• not applying for any advertised jobs at Sussex
• not giving lectures at Sussex
• not accepting positions as visiting professors or researchers at Sussex
• not writing for any academic journal which is edited at or produced by Sussex
• not taking up new contracts as external examiners for taught courses

UCU Sussex representative, Paul Cecil, said: 'Staff at Sussex have been left with little option but to ask the union to consider the most serious measure it can take in the form of the academic boycott. With around 100 staff about to lose their jobs which would seriously damage the quality of education we can offer current and prospective students, and the worrying prospect of further cuts to come, our members have been left with little option but to move towards a boycott.

'This is not an easy decision to take, but we are dismayed at the failure of our management to engage in meaningful discussions to save jobs at Sussex now, or to discuss with us how to avoid similar future cuts. We're keen to get the matter resolved with minimum disruption and believe that a satisfactory solution is possible. We again call on our management to engage in discussion to resolve the dispute. Our members have made clear how serious we are and that the prospect of further industrial action around the examination process cannot be ruled out.'