Students and staff have occupied a floor of a University of Liverpool building.
The group, UoL Student-Staff Solidarity, announced on social media it had occupied the top floor of the Teaching Hub 502 building on Mount Pleasant in the city centre on Wednesday, March 15, and also claimed to have stayed in the building overnight. The demonstration was done as both students and staff at the university demanded the end of "degrading pay and working conditions".
In a statement released by the group, it said: "For 10 years, staff at our university have gone on strike. Last year a student referendum found students overwhelmingly in favour of the strike action. The staff and students are united. We will no longer accept the degrading pay and working conditions of our lecturers while our vice chancellor sits on over 300k per year.
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"We are taking a stand against university management that exploits staff and leaves students with inadequate learning conditions. We cannot accept the mistreatment of our postgraduate peers.
"We demand: 1) End post-graduate exploitation We demand an end to zero-hours contracts at our university. All postgraduate employees currently on zero-hours contracts must be shifted to fractional contracts and paid accurately for the amount of hours worked. The calculation for these hours should be established via a consultation with the UCU. We condemn the universities abysmal exploitation of our postgraduate peers.
"2) End the gender, ethnic and disability pay gaps at our university We demand an actionable review and plan put in place to reduce the gender, ethnic and disability pay gap. This plan must display real progress to reduce these pay gaps with a minimum of a 3% reduction per year.
"3) Make student voices heard in a Summit with students, UCU members and university management
"Students and staff are the core of university life and as such should be given a space in which to fully communicate their concerns to management. The strikes do affect students and students recognise university management as the cause of these disruptions.
"As such students should have the ability to level criticism at University management alongside their lectures. We demand an open summit with Students, the UCU and university management. This would provide our university with much-needed accountability and transparency. Our university will no longer accept the apathy of its management."
In response to one of the rooms in the building being occupied by the group, a University of Liverpool spokesperson said: "A small number of students have gained unauthorised access to one room in a building on campus. We are mindful of ensuring the health and safety of those who are currently occupying the building.
"The university is open as usual and we will continue to monitor the situation."
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