The local ballot for strike action against 100% pay deductions for Action Short of Strike began on Monday 28th February. Please post yours as soon as possible. The ballot will close on Monday 21st March at 12pm, and the last safe day to post will be Thursday 17th March. If your ballot paper does not arrive by the beginning of next week, you can order a replacement ballot through this link.

Queen Mary senior management have launched an attack on your right to strike and an attack on your right to organise collectively in your workplace. They are enacting punitive deductions of 100% of your pay for ASOS including for any staff member who refuses to
reschedule classes cancelled due to strike action.

The effect of the deductions policy will be even more disruption to the university than would have occurred otherwise. The university has said that any work that staff do on days when they have 100% of their pay deducted will be “voluntary and unpaid”. This could mean even more cancelled classes and more lost education – exactly the opposite of what management say they intend. The deductions policy also risks damaging staff morale and trust irreparably – and the university cannot function without the goodwill of its staff.

The real intention behind these bullying tactics is to intimidate you and undermine your ability to take meaningful strike action both in the current disputes about USS pensions and the Four Fights, but also in any future disputes that may arise. By taking this approach, management are showing they don’t want a workplace where you can act collectively to improve your working conditions. They don’t want a workplace where you can ever take industrial action. Instead, they want a workplace where you work in fear and never try to challenge them. This is why you need to stand alongside your colleagues to fight these intimidation tactics.

You need to stand up to management bullying and pay docking. You need to stand up for your right to strike and to organise collectively in your workplace.

VOTE YES TO STRIKE ACTION! VOTE YES TO ACTION SHORT OF A STRIKE!

A 50% turnout is required in order for the ballot to count. If you can help Get The Vote Out in your School, it will be a major help. Volunteer and find out more by writing to membership@qmul.org

If you are a student at Queen Mary, please help us end this dispute by using this email template to send an email to the Senior Executive Team and the Council of the university.

If you are not based at Queen Mary, please support our fight by donating to our strike fund.