Tens of thousands of university students could face disruption to their studies next month after higher education staff voted in favour of industrial action in protest at potential changes to their pensions.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at 61 universities backed industrial action amid widespread concern about new pension proposals that they fear would result in a typical lecturer losing £200,000 in retirement.

There has been growing anger at UK university campuses since last summer when the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), the sector’s main retirement fund, demanded an extra £500m a year from university employers and staff to fill a £5bn funding hole.

Universities UK (UUK), which represents university employers, has proposed altering the fund from a defined benefit scheme that gives a guaranteed retirement income to a riskier defined contribution plan, where pension income is subject to movements in the stock market. The union is concerned its members would lose out and that the scheme would be less generous.

Quick guide Britain's five worst pension deficits in 2016 Show Hide Shell - £6.92bn The deficit at the global energy group Shell is large and has leapt 240% in a year; in 2015 the deficit was just under £2.9bn. The company has pension assets of more than £60bn, though it provides little detail on how these assets are invested, says LCP, a pensions consultancy. BP - £6.72bn BP, one of the biggest oil and gas companies, closed its final salary pension scheme to new entrants in 2010. Its deficit represented 7% of the value of the company in 2016. Its 2015 deficit was £4.21bn, says LCP. BT - £6.4bn BT revealed pension liabilities of £60bn in its March accounts, from £50bn a year earlier. It was one of two FTSE 100 firms to pay more than £1bn into defined benefit schemes in its 2016 accounting year. BAE Systems - £6.08bn BAE Systems announced in November 2017 that, as at March that year, the total of the deficits across its UK pension schemes stood at £2.1bn. That is much lower than the figure quoted here because it has put a higher estimate on the future returns from the assets in its schemes. Tesco - £3.17bn Tesco shut its defined benefit pension scheme in 2015. The deficit amounted to 22% of the company's value in 2016, said LCP - down from 24% in 2015, when its deficit was £4.84bn.

The decisive UCU vote – in which 88% of members who voted backed strike action and 93% backed action short of a strike – was described by UUK as “disappointing”, with talks due to finish on Tuesday. The union said it hoped talks could be extended in an effort to resolve differences and avoid strike action.

The list of universities where the ballot took place and that are likely to be affected by any industrial action includes many of the country’s leading institutions such as Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College and King’s College London.

The UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: “UCU members have made it quite clear that they are prepared to take sustained strike action to defend their pensions. USS already offers worse benefits than other schemes available in universities, and UUK’s proposals would make matters worse.”

According to the union, two earlier rounds of cuts have already left USS members with pensions worth less than those of school teachers and academic colleagues in the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, an alternative scheme on offer in universities. A number of vice-chancellors have voiced their concerns about the proposed changes.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Sally Hunt, UCU general secretary, said members are prepared to take sustained industrial action. Photograph: Steve Parkins/Rex/Shutterstock

A UUK spokesperson warned against industrial action, saying it could cause unwanted disruption to students, and said urgent action was required to solve the significant funding challenges facing USS.

“We should be under no illusion, this is not a problem that will go away if ignored. UUK’s priority is to put USS on a secure and sustainable footing while offering attractive, market-leading pensions – the very best that can be afforded by both employers and employees.

“To retain the status quo would only serve interests in the short term. Without reform now, universities will likely be forced to divert funding allocated from research and teaching to fill a pensions funding gap. The option of no reform is a dangerous gamble. It is a risk that employers cannot take.

“If industrial action takes place it could cause disruption to students at some universities. We hope that this can be avoided through further talks with UCU and that union members carefully consider the possible impact on students of taking industrial action.”

The union said it hoped that the overwhelming mandate for strike action on a 58% turnout would focus universities’ minds and that more vice-chancellors would add their voices to the growing pressure on UUK to agree a deal.

The union’s higher education committee is meeting to plan an industrial action strategy in case talks fail to produce a solution. About 184,000 university staff – mainly at pre-1992 universities – contribute towards a USS pension.