On the week of Monday 17 November, members of the UCU (Universities and Colleges Union) at the University of Edinburgh went on a three day strike period. This had overwhelming effects across the university campus with lectures and seminars being cancelled across all courses, and demonstrations taking place in front of many university buildings.
This strike came as a response to relentless job cuts as part of the university’s budget plan; senior management aiming to reduce by £140m, with more staff at the university facing compulsory redundancies, and many feeling at risk.
The strikes received a lot of support from student groups, with societies even organising group outings and meetings at the picket lines. I was interested to know just how individual students felt about the strikes and the disruption made to their studies, as well as their solidarity with the striking staff.
Frustration over fees is an interesting matter regarded by students, as they can’t help but be reminded of the fact that degrees are costly and time sensitive. How can we defend the purpose of our tens of thousands of pounds disappearing into the university’s ether, when we are not receiving in-person teaching?
One third-year student said: “None of us have control over the tuition fees that have already been paid, I would rather use my frustration over missed teaching to fuel my support for striking staff and my anger at senior management.”
Some students don’t think they received adequate communication about the strikes, which can seriously undermine the movement and students caring about the cause. How can we make sure that students don’t consider this just a non-consequential, get-out-of-lectures free card?
“I received emails from one of my lecturers, and one tutor spoke to the class in person. I think tutors speaking about it openly makes all the difference and encourages students to get involved,” one student said about the communication they received.
So what constitutes student support? In the days the strikes were on, there was a lot of information coming from several sources about getting involved, including the UCU Edinburgh Instagram page as well as the Staff Student Solidarity Network , but many well-intentioned students were still afraid they would undermine the movement. Among my friends there were disputes about whether using the library at all was crossing the picket-lines. In the cases where the students had limited contact with staff members, the information seemed to be more accessible to those who already had a predetermined awareness. Another student was very honest in saying that she initially didn’t know why the staff were striking,
“I got emails saying there wouldn’t be lectures but I had to really research it on my own to understand what was happening. I think it depends on the teachers and probably on the courses as well.”
While having these discussions, I noticed that the humanities students I interviewed seemed more personally and acutely affected by this industrial action, with all of them saying they knew at least one tutor who was being made redundant. As areas of study most frequently targeted by budget cuts, the humanities and the arts are more at risk for staff redundancies. For many students of these subjects, having a position in their field at a prestigious university is one of the most lucrative and rewarding career choices, with the choices themselves being limited and competitive. The strikes aren’t just about missing out on teaching, it’s about the university throwing up a middle finger to the programmes and careers they themselves offer and promote.
“It’s already so hard to break into academia, it’s not encouraging to see that the uni can just make you redundant,” I heard from one history student.
At the same time, it seems that students supporting industrial action in a radical way can be a double-edged sword. We want to get the education the university promises us, instead of being in the middle of the staff’s fight with the university, but I could also argue that losing a valued educator is a much greater disruption on learning than any involvement in the strikes could ever be.
This brings me to the final question; do the students at the university think the strikes as they are happening now are effective?
“I think solidarity between students and staff works, but it needs to be more than just not showing up to your class and staying in bed,” a third year student told me.
One STEM student said “I think people think it’s just a couple days off. Some of my coursemates went on big nights out on Sunday because we didn’t have our Monday 9am. It needs to be more of a disruption rather than a reward.”
One linguistics student stated “I think the uni isn’t going to do anything unless we stop doing the work, grades drop, and Edinburgh goes down in the rankings, and who is going to take that risk?”
As industrial action continues to be a part of life at university, it’s our job as students to realise that our reaction can be just as influential as the strike itself.
Photo by Daniel Ghazi for The Student