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Seven more days of strikes at Hull College Group

31 May 2018

Staff at the Hull College Group will walk out for seven days in June as part of an ongoing row over plans to slash hundreds of jobs.

Members of UCU will walk out for five days on Monday 18 June. They will return to work on Monday 25 June, but then walk out for two days on Tuesday 26 and Wednesday 27 June.

The row centres on plans to cut 231 posts across the college group's three campuses in Hull, Harrogate and Goole - a move which UCU says would lead to around a third of the workforce being cut.

The union said there had not been sufficient progress in talks to secure members' jobs and they felt they now had no option but to take more action. UCU said the ball was in the college's court and hoped the fresh strike dates would focus their employers' minds.

Staff have already walked out for three days as part of the dispute (Wednesday 9, Thursday 17 and Friday 18 May).

UCU regional official, Julie Kelley, said: 'UCU members at Hull College Group feel they have no choice now but to take further action to focus their employers' minds. Strike action is never taken lightly, but the college is not responding to our concerns about the impact these cuts would have for staff, students and the local community.

'There is a clear timetable now with disruption set for the end of June and we urge the college to respond positively and work with us to explore alternatives to the cuts.'

Last month UCU members delivered a damning vote of no confidence in chief executive officer Michelle Swithenbank. The union said her position was untenable after a failure to defend jobs at the college, as well as efforts to bully and then bribe staff not to attend a protest against the running of the college. It took the college four days to issue a statement backing the beleaguered head.

In the recent strike ballot, 79% of the staff who voted at the college's three campuses in Hull, Harrogate and Goole backed strike action.

Last updated: 4 June 2018

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