University marking boycott: Robert Halfon calls for talks to end dispute

The authorities has urged assemblage bosses and a lecturers' national to restart talks and forestall disruption continuing into the caller world year.

University and College Union (UCU) members person been boycotting marking papers since April implicit a wage dispute.

Negotiations with the University and College Employers Association (UCEA) person breached down without an agreement.

Education curate Robert Halfon said the uncertainty faced by students was "unacceptable".

The UCU has vowed to proceed the marking boycott, which covers each exams and immoderate appraisal that counts towards a student's last grade, until the quality has been resolved.

The concern enactment astatine 145 higher acquisition institutions crossed the UK began connected 20 April.

It means immoderate students near assemblage this summertime without knowing what people they person been awarded, oregon were incapable to postgraduate astatine all.

UCU members voted to cull a wage connection for 2023-24 worthy betwixt 5% and 8%, with the national pushing for a emergence of the highest from 2 options - the RPI measurement of inflation positive 2%, oregon a 12% increase.

Senior national officials are owed to clasp an exigency gathering connected Monday to determine connected their adjacent steps.

Mr Halfon wrote to UCU wide caput Dr Jo Grady connected Friday up of that meeting, saying: "It is unacceptable that students, galore of whom person already suffered important disruption to their studies implicit caller years, look further disruption and uncertainty".

He continued: "Final twelvemonth students who person inactive not yet graduated volition beryllium understandably anxious astir the presumption of occupation offers oregon progression to further study.

"It would beryllium disappointing if aboriginal cohorts endure akin disruption arsenic a effect of a marking and appraisal boycott.

"Whatever the rights and wrongs of the existent dispute, enactment that damages students' prospects is the incorrect happening to do."

The authorities does not person a ceremonial relation successful the negotiations, but the acquisition curate called for quality talks to beryllium held arsenic soon arsenic possible.

Dr Grady welcomed the letter, adding "I'm gladsome to spot the authorities has taken announcement of the situation our members and assemblage students are facing".

She continued: "We've done everything imaginable to settee this dispute, support UK grade standards and students' graduations, including calling for the talks to restart successful the archetypal place.

"Unfortunately, UCEA, and assemblage bosses, person made it wide they would alternatively propulsion students nether the autobus than settee this dispute."

She said Mr Halfon should impulse the UCEA to "use the sector's immense wealthiness to enactment unit and let students to graduate".

In a abstracted missive to Raj Jethwa, the main enforcement of the UCEA, helium urged the assemblage to bash "everything wrong your powers to support the interests of students".

He added: "Wherever possible, I would promote higher acquisition providers to grant degrees erstwhile they person capable grounds of a student's anterior attainment to bash so."

Mr Jethwa said:"Our caller feedback that 2 thirds of higher acquisition institutions said that each of their students were capable to postgraduate this summertime is small comfortableness to the students who proceed to carnivore the marking and appraisal repercussions, nor for the higher acquisition institutions and the unit who person been moving tirelessly to effort to assistance these students.

"This signifier of concern action, which is peculiarly damaging to students astatine this clip of year, has been precise disappointing."