Give jaw-jaw a chance

April 14, 2011

While I fully accept Tom Hickey's arguments about the unfair and significant losses that university employers seek to inflict on staff by their hard line on changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (Letters, 7 April), I cannot agree that a useful way for the University and College Union to proceed is via more strikes. I cannot see that such action will work. And this, I believe, is a view held by the vast majority of UCU members.

What must happen is something quite different. Some amendments to the original proposals were made after the consultation process. Although not enough, they indicated a will to compromise. It is in everyone's interest for both sides to meet again and hammer out a definitive compromise solution. Strike threats on the union side and legal threats by the employers can only lead to entrenched positions, which is the last thing we need. From now on, it should be jaw-jaw, not war-war.

Howard Moss, Swansea

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