Academics in the UK fear they are facing “excessive” workloads that could trigger a “health and safety crisis” as they attempt to clear marking backlogs on tight deadlines following the end of the University and College Union’s five-month boycott.
The action was brought to an abrupt end on 6 September after a vote among union members, with the worst-affected universities making it clear that staff had to begin marking again as soon as possible because thousands of students remain in the dark about their final grades.
This has prompted a pushback from the union, with members arguing the timelines are not achievable alongside other workloads at the busy start of the year.
The row is set to inflame tensions again, with five days of strikes also planned to disrupt welcome weeks at the end of September as part of the dispute over wages and workloads.
