{"id":477023,"date":"2026-04-20T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/?p=477023"},"modified":"2026-04-20T17:18:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T16:18:10","slug":"strike-looming-at-london-south-bank-university","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/area\/elephant-and-castle\/strike-looming-at-london-south-bank-university\/","title":{"rendered":"Strike looming at London South Bank University"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Staff at London South Bank University (LBSU) have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action after planned contract changes caused uproar<\/strong> <strong>and an growth in union membership.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The University Colleges Union (UCU) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucu.org.uk\/article\/14456\/LSBU-blocks-access-to-pension--threatens-academics-with-the-sack-if-they-dont-accept-new-terms-with-increased-workloads\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.ucu.org.uk\/article\/14456\/LSBU-blocks-access-to-pension--threatens-academics-with-the-sack-if-they-dont-accept-new-terms-with-increased-workloads\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">has already lambasted a new plan <\/a>by the LBSU that would, they say, take academics off their current contracts, leave new staff unable to access the Teachers\u2019 Pension Scheme, and lock staff into longer hours, with fears of mass redundancies.<\/p><script type=\"text\/plain\" data-tcf=\"waiting-for-consent\" data-id=\"69959\" data-bid=\"1\" data-placement=\"448384\" data-no-track=\"impressions\">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<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>As a result, the union rejected the plans, and a subsequent ballot of staff on Wednesday resulted in 89% of members voting in favour of strikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are around 500 academic staff at LBSU, with a union representative claiming that a considerable majority of staff were in the union and that 70 more had joined since the announcement of the contract changes, with &#8216;more joining each week.&#8217;<\/p><script type=\"text\/plain\" data-tcf=\"waiting-for-consent\" data-id=\"68153\" data-bid=\"1\" data-placement=\"448385\" data-no-track=\"impressions\">PGRpdiBpZD0ic291dGgtNjY1Njk3OTA4IiBjbGFzcz0ic291dGgtY29udGVudCBzb3V0aC1lbnRpdHktcGxhY2VtZW50IiBzdHlsZT0ibWFyZ2luLWxlZnQ6IGF1dG87bWFyZ2luLXJpZ2h0OiBhdXRvO3RleHQtYWxpZ246IGNlbnRlcjsiPjwhLS0gIC8xNTQ3MjUwNzAsMjI2OTQxOTY5Njkvc291dGh3YXJrbmV3cy9zb3V0aHdhcmtuZXdzIC0tPg0KPGRpdiBpZD0iZGl2LWdwdC1hZC0yeDEiPg0KPHNjcmlwdD4NCmdvb2dsZXRhZy5jbWQucHVzaChmdW5jdGlvbigpIHsgZ29vZ2xldGFnLmRpc3BsYXkoJ2Rpdi1ncHQtYWQtMngxJyk7IH0pOw0KPC9zY3JpcHQ+DQo8L2Rpdj4gICAgICAgICAgPC9kaXY+<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>An LBSU staff member and UCU representative said: &#8220;As of today, UCU has formally registered a dispute over the university&#8217;s refusal to agree to our request to halt this proposal, to allow for meaningful negotiations. We will now be progressing this matter towards preparing for strike action.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-southwark-news wp-block-embed-southwark-news\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"FodrS5WekzQ7RPuT8GUMchZNlpOib9X0Ev64\"><blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Z4ywAquMHC\"><a href=\"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/area\/rotherhithe\/designs-for-the-canada-water-masterplans-second-bridge-have-been-unveiled\/\">Designs for Canada Water&#8217;s second bridge have been unveiled<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Designs for Canada Water&#8217;s second bridge have been unveiled&#8221; &#8212; Southwark News\" src=\"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/area\/rotherhithe\/designs-for-the-canada-water-masterplans-second-bridge-have-been-unveiled\/embed\/#?secret=NJXBmioiON#?secret=Z4ywAquMHC\" data-secret=\"Z4ywAquMHC\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>UCU branch chair and associate professor in nonlinear dynamics Geoff Goss said: \u201cThe staff are very concerned and people are feeling very anxious.<\/p><script type=\"text\/plain\" data-tcf=\"waiting-for-consent\" data-id=\"71156\" data-bid=\"1\" data-placement=\"448386\" data-no-track=\"impressions\">PGRpdiBpZD0ic291dGgtMzMyMjY5MzAwMyIgY2xhc3M9InNvdXRoLWluLWFydGljbGUtbXB1OSBzb3V0aC1lbnRpdHktcGxhY2VtZW50Ij48IS0tICAvMTU0NzI1MDcwLDIyNjk0MTk2OTY5L3NvdXRod2Fya25ld3Mvc291dGh3YXJrbmV3cyAtLT4NCjxkaXYgaWQ9ImRpdi1ncHQtYWQtbXB1OSI+DQo8c2NyaXB0Pg0KZ29vZ2xldGFnLmNtZC5wdXNoKGZ1bmN0aW9uKCkgeyBnb29nbGV0YWcuZGlzcGxheSgnZGl2LWdwdC1hZC1tcHU5Jyk7IH0pOw0KPC9zY3JpcHQ+DQo8L2Rpdj4gICAgIDwvZGl2Pg==<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere was already a series of redundancies two years ago and we were led to believe at the time that the relationship would improve after that\u2026it\u2019s very disappointing to see another fundamental change to our working situation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The union had expressed fears that contract changes at LBSU would leave staff vulnerable to a &#8216;fire and rehire&#8217; scheme, a claim the university has outright rejected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8216;Fire and rehire&#8217; schemes involve the mass firing of staff within an organisation before other workers are rehired at lower wages, with the policy brought to attention when <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/business-57670287\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/business-57670287\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">P&amp;O Cruises sacked 800 staff<\/a> and replaced them in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Goss clarified that under present legislation, these schemes were still legally possible, but that the Employment Rights Bill making its way through Parliament would introduce measures to clamp down on it.<\/p><script type=\"text\/plain\" data-tcf=\"waiting-for-consent\" data-id=\"71157\" data-bid=\"1\" data-placement=\"448387\" data-no-track=\"impressions\">PGRpdiBpZD0ic291dGgtMjk5MjQzODQwNyIgY2xhc3M9InNvdXRoLWluLWFydGljbGUtbXB1LTEwIHNvdXRoLWVudGl0eS1wbGFjZW1lbnQiPjwhLS0gIC8xNTQ3MjUwNzAsMjI2OTQxOTY5Njkvc291dGh3YXJrbmV3cy9zb3V0aHdhcmtuZXdzIC0tPg0KPGRpdiBpZD0iZGl2LWdwdC1hZC1tcHUxMCI+DQo8c2NyaXB0Pg0KZ29vZ2xldGFnLmNtZC5wdXNoKGZ1bmN0aW9uKCkgeyBnb29nbGV0YWcuZGlzcGxheSgnZGl2LWdwdC1hZC1tcHUxMCcpOyB9KTsNCjwvc2NyaXB0Pg0KPC9kaXY+ICAgICA8L2Rpdj4=<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>He also cited that the ballot had been delayed until this week due to &#8216;dozens&#8217; more staff members at LBSU joining the union in order to vote against the plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Goss said: \u201cThis is a watershed moment. The university\u2019s been here since 1893 and it\u2019s a part of the local community \u2013 we want to resolve this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One teacher at the university, who wished to remain anonymous, said the move was \u2018quite a shock\u2019. She said: \u201cEffectively, every single member of staff is at risk of redundancy\u2026it really feels like an attack on the academic staff, due to the university\u2019s financial position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe were expecting something was coming, but not like this\u2026we really hope they stop and think and start to talk to us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: &#8216;LSBU is putting academic jobs at risk unnecessarily\u2026given the strength of opposition to these changes, we hope that we do not see tactics like those seen at P&amp;O, or that LSBU will try to force them through under the guise of redundancies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Responding, London South Bank University rejected claims made by the UCU. A spokesperson said: \u201cLondon South Bank University&nbsp;has not threatened to fire or rehire any of its academic staff\u2026the University&nbsp;is keen&nbsp;to&nbsp;discuss&nbsp;its&nbsp;proposals&nbsp;with recognised Trade Unions&nbsp;and&nbsp;launches the first&nbsp;in&nbsp;a series&nbsp;of&nbsp;three question&nbsp;and&nbsp;answer sessions&nbsp;with staff&nbsp;on 15&nbsp;April&nbsp;2026&nbsp;which will be complemented by individual&nbsp;and group conversations with impacted staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cLike&nbsp;almost every&nbsp;university, LSBU faces unprecedented financial challenges and is&nbsp;taking&nbsp;action to reduce&nbsp;its deficit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Professor Tara Dean, Provost at London South Bank University said: \u201cThe challenges facing higher education have forced us to be bold and take a radical approach to meet the needs of our students and secure the&nbsp;University\u2019s long-term future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Senior nursing leaders <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nursingtimes.net\/education-and-training\/university-urged-to-reconsider-proposed-cuts-to-senior-nurse-academic-posts-09-04-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">last week sharply criticised<\/a> LBSU&#8217;s planned changes and similarly called for the university to rethink its proposed cuts to academic posts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-southwark-news wp-block-embed-southwark-news\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"jDeNS1vlBQ05TRCFiIHpoE\"><blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"tvWFSFTvYZ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/news\/news-plus\/former-candidate-removed-by-labour-seeks-your-party-backing-for-local-election-return\/\">Former candidate removed by Labour seeks Your Party backing for local election return<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Former candidate removed by Labour seeks Your Party backing for local election return&#8221; &#8212; Southwark News\" src=\"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/news\/news-plus\/former-candidate-removed-by-labour-seeks-your-party-backing-for-local-election-return\/embed\/#?secret=vDfPNdiBEr#?secret=tvWFSFTvYZ\" data-secret=\"tvWFSFTvYZ\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Staff at London South Bank University (LBSU) have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action after planned contract changes caused uproar and an growth in union membership. The University Colleges Union (UCU) has already lambasted a new plan by the LBSU that would, they say, take academics off their current contracts, leave new staff unable [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18930,"featured_media":477024,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_inline_post_related":"1"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":"Planned contract changes have caused uproar among some teaching staff"},"jnews_primary_category":{"id":"77"},"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[7375,77,13539,13602,13543,8341],"tags":[18277,208,16372,2029,18638],"class_list":["post-477023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-elephant-and-castle","category-featured","category-news","category-politics","category-southwark","tag-south-bank","tag-southwark","tag-strikes","tag-teacher","tag-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477023","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18930"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=477023"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477023\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":478188,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477023\/revisions\/478188"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/477024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=477023"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=477023"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southwarknews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=477023"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}