Academics at the University of Brighton fear that proposed changes to their contracts will see them lose time protected for research and spend more hours teaching.
A consultation has begun at the institution on new terms and conditions that would, the local branch of the University and College Union (UCU) said, break the post-92 national contract because lecturers would be asked to teach for about 25 hours a week, more than the current weekly cap of 18 hours.
Currently, 20 per cent of a lecturer’s role – about 320 hours annually for a full-time position – is allocated for research and scholarly activity, but this could be reduced or abolished under the proposals. Instead, staff would be given the option to bid to buy out more time to pursue research projects.
A university spokesman said that Brighton’s academic workforce structure and contractual conditions were “increasingly out of step with sector standards” and that many comparator institutions had already implemented similar changes.
