A national marking boycott is having only a “limited” impact at UK universities despite reports of widespread disruption and cancelled graduation ceremonies, an employers’ body has claimed.
According to figures collected by the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (Ucea), released on 23 June, many students will be unaffected by the refusal of University and College Union (UCU) members to grade assignments and exams in recent weeks as part of a long-running dispute over pay.
Of the 49 per cent of universities involved in national pay negotiations that provided feedback to Ucea on the disruption caused by industrial action, 71 per cent said less than 2 per cent of students would be unable to graduate this summer, while a further 4 per cent of institutions said that between 2 per cent and 9 per cent of students would be affected.
About 20 per cent of institutions said they were unsure of the number of students affected because UCU had urged members not to inform employers of their intentions.
