University strikes: Students demand tuition fee refunds for planned walkouts

Students are demanding tuition fee refunds for university strikes set to take place later this month.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) will hold eight days of strike action at 60 universities across the UK amid disputes over staff pensions, pay and working conditions.

Just hours after the action was announced last week, a petition was launched calling for students to each be reimbursed hundreds of pounds for lost teaching and learning time.

It comes after a number of institutions were forced to pay compensation to students over missed teaching hours when universities were brought to a standstill last year by strikes.

Thousands of students, who pay up to £9,250 a year in tuition fees, are facing disruption to their lectures and seminars for the second time during their degrees.

A petition, from students at Bangor University in Wales, is calling for the university to pay out more than £4m in compensation as it claims students will “lose £380 each” during the planned strikes.

Katie Medlin, who set up the petition, hopes students at other universities will take similar action.

“We hope to inform the student body of the strikes and why they’re happening and gain support for our striking lectures,” the master’s student told The Independent.

UCU members at 60 universities will walk out from 25 November until 4 December following votes in favour of action.

As well as the eight strike days, union members will begin other forms of industrial action when they return to work. This will include working strictly to contract, not covering for absent colleagues, and refusing to reschedule lectures lost to strike action.

Elaena Shipp, another student at Bangor University behind the petition, tweeted: “If universities want to run themselves like businesses and treat students like customers, that cuts both ways – customers who don’t get what they pay for are entitled to a refund.”

On the calls for compensation, Nick Hillman, director of think tank Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), said: “I think they have every right to seek redress for teaching they do not receive.

“But it is a more complicated question than many people realise. For example, it is not clear how much each lost hour of teaching is worth and, given that taxpayers still cover much of the cost, perhaps we are all owed a refund just as much as the students?”

He added: “Students demanding refunds make the strike even more serious for institutions rather than less.”

University staff will pay around £40,000 more into their pension – but they will receive nearly £200,000 less in retirement following reforms to the pension scheme, the UCU says.

Increased contributions and other changes to the universities superannuation scheme (USS) mean many people are suffering substantial losses, the union has previously warned.

Claire Sosienski-Smith, vice president for higher education at the National Union of Students, said: “Students won’t be happy about having to miss lectures, but they’re also not happy about studying in institutions where their staff are underpaid and overworked.

“We’d encourage students to put pressure on their universities to bring about fairer and better working conditions for their lecturers, technical staff and postgraduate teaching assistants.”

Jo Grady, general secretary of UCU, said: "It should be little surprise that students paying exorbitant tuition fees are worried about the impact of avoidable strikes on their studies and are seeking to hold their universities to account.

"Students have told us that they are right behind us when it comes to the fight for fair pay and decent pensions in higher education - it is now up to the employers to address the concerns of staff.

"We would encourage all students to help focus vice-chancellors’ minds by asking them exactly what they are doing to help resolve these disputes.”

A spokesperson for USS Employers said: “We understand that missed teaching time is frustrating. It’s important for all universities to ensure they are updating students about what is happening and any replacement teaching or resources that will be provided.

“Universities affected by strike action are working hard to ensure that any students affected do not miss out on the opportunity to learn.

“If students feel their studies have been negatively impacted and that the alternative arrangements that have been made are inadequate, they should complain through their university in the first instance.”