THERE were lively picket lines outside Imperial College London in White City and South Kensington yesterday.
Imperial College staff resumed strikes last Thursday against a pay cutting offer and are holding a further strike next Tuesday.
The strikes involve three unions, Unite, UCU and Unison.
At the White City picket line yesterday Mike Jones, Unite branch chair, told News Line: ‘Our fight continues, we have been engaging with staff and students at Imperial.
‘One thing remains consistent across the board, is that fair pay should start today. Students are missing out on their education, and crucial projects from research to infrastructure are being delayed.
‘This puts, the amount of impact that our world leading university can make in serious jeopardy.
‘Senior management can choose to change this, and the three trade unions at Imperial College, remain open for meaningful negotiations in order to bring this dispute to a close.
‘We are strong in our conviction, and our members remain committed to the cause.’
Donna Brown, UCU Branch Chair at Holloway University, joined the South Kensington picket line.
She said: ‘I am here, to show solidarity to my colleagues at Imperial College.
‘My great fear, is that the UK higher education system is about to collapse.
‘Pay rates have plummeted as workloads have intensified. This impacts the quality of research and teaching.
‘Marketise, means that the students are paying through the nose for their education.
‘But the quality and support has been damaged by senior management.’
Unite said: ‘Around 1,200 workers, including more than 250 Unite members, have already taken part in 10 days of strikes between October and the end of November over the imposition of a two per cent pay rise.
‘Not only is this a significant real-terms pay cut, with RPI inflation currently standing at 4.2 per cent, but it was calculated by the university using faulty benchmarking data.’
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘Imperial has cut workers’ pay using calculations it has itself admitted are wrong.
‘It must fix these figures and come back with a fair pay offer – something it can easily afford. Until then, strikes will continue with Unite’s full support.
‘Specialist sciences university Imperial College London is consistently ranked among the top universities in the world.
‘Its latest financial report showed it had a total income of £1.5 billion in 2025/2024 up from £1.33 billion in 2024/2023. It had a surplus of £131 million, £50 million more than anticipated when it imposed the below inflation pay rise.
‘Industrial action will intensify if the dispute is not resolved.’
Unite regional officer Ahlam Khamliche said: ‘Imperial College must admit it has made a mistake with its pay calculations and put forward a fair deal. It is choosing not to out of greed. This dispute will not end until that happens.’
