There are two funds available: the national Fighting Fund, and the Local Fund (jump to lower area of this page) provided by our branch. You may be eligible for both, as explained below.

Fighting Fund (UCU National Scheme)

Following industrial action members are reminded they can apply for the UCU national Fighting Fund to supplement deducted earnings.

To claim usual national Fighting Fund, log into the UCU members portal (MyUCU), go to My UCU and see the ‘Fighting Fund’ tab to begin a claim using the webform.

You will need to supply your payslip showing deductions when applying on the UCU members portal (MyUCU) at the end of each monthly salary period. 

When applying on MyUCU, simply supply the total number of days of action you took, followed by the total number of days being claimed, you can simply supply the total number of days of action you took for each box, the national team will deduct any relevant exclusion/sacrifice days, or other limits.

UCU Rising Action (pay & working conditions, and cuts to pensions)

For details, please see:

• 2022 Fighting Fund general guidance
• Fighting Fund – Disputes In HE 2022 – “UCU Rising”

24/11/22-
The national Fighting Fund is available for the UCU Rising action commencing from 24/11/22 and including three initial planned days of strike action.
UCU has stated the following terms: “Payment is made: in the sum of £50 for the second and subsequent days of strike action for members earning £30,000 gross or more per annum (this is subject to a cap of 11 days. This will be kept under review); and, in the sum of up to £75 for the second and subsequent days of strike action for members earning less than £30,000 gross per annum (this is subject to a cap of 11 days. This will be kept under review). Payments also apply to action short of strike where the employer has deducted a full day’s pay for partial performance. In these circumstances eligibility and payments are as set out above. However, for those earning less than £60,000 gross per annum, a claim can be made for up to five days above the present cap of 11 days for action short of strike where the employer deducts a full day’s pay.”
24, 25, 30 Nov 2022
Fighting Fund is available when January 2023 payslips are issued showing deductions for these days.
Feb-March 2023
Fighting Fund was available using payslips issued showing deductions for these days, up to the 11 day cap.
UCU Rising action 25-29 September 2023
Three days are available for this action, see the 2023 Fighting Fund advice page.

For information on support available for previous disputes and to make any outstanding claims please see the archive page.

Key facts about the National Fighting Fund (IMPORTANT – the below is typical FF information only):

• Note – below rates reflect typical historic FF rates only, for full detailed information on rates and excluded days for specific periods/actions see PDF and guides at:
  https://my.ucu.org.uk/app/answers/list/kw/fighting%20fund/search/1
• You will need to log into the national UCU members’ portal to register.
• The typical historical rate is £50 per day from day 3 onwards.
• A historical rate of £75 per day from day 2 onwards is typically available for those earning less than £30,000.
• Any individual/separate action has a limit of 11 days FF support.
• Support will also be provided to hourly paid staff who may lose work as a consequence of taking strike action and strike pay will be made based upon your normal working patterns.
• You need to be a valid member paying the correct subscription rate (check here).
• You must be able to demonstrate deductions due to industrial action.

Help applying to the national Fighting Fund

• See the instructions for submitting your claim on the national FF site.
• The UCU FF has stated that “Members should make their claims as each deduction occurs, ie. as they get each payslip.”, so you are advised to claim on the basis of deductions as they arise in each payslip, however in any difficulty, you can make a single claim on your last payslip containing deductions.
• The FF application will ask you to upload a scan of the relevant payslip, you can download this from CORE or ESS (please submit in PDF or JPEG format).
• For enquires: fightingfund@ucu.org.uk (always cite your UCU membership number).
• For any issues applying to national Fighting Fund, such as lack of access to payslips (e.g. for casualised members), please contact the branch for assistance in making your application.

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Local Fund (UCU Liverpool Branch)

The local fund is available to all branch members who have had pay deducted as a result of participating in industrial action. It is also intended for individuals suffering imminent financial difficulty due to strike deductions, particularly staff employed on lower salary bands, hourly paid staff, those on precarious contracts/ facing end of contract circumstances. The local fund is available to all who may need support to meet essential living costs to help them continue to participate in industrial action. Note that members are able to apply for the local fund in advance of deductions being made if there will be significant impact on the member’s ability to meet their financial obligations.

Note – we expect members to apply to the national Fighting Fund to offset deductions. For additional financial help, i.e. funds beyond the national Fighting Fund daily allowance or other limitations you can also for our branch Local Fund. You can also apply to the Local Fund if there are special circumstances preventing you from accessing the Fighting Fund, however for assistance applying to Fighting Fund where issues may arise such as lack of access to payslips, please contact the branch for advice.

Please also consider donating to our Local Fund.

For UoL members applying for the local branch Local Fund, please ensure you use our online Webform (requires UoL/MWS login and two-factor authentication), or enquire for any problems making a claim at: laut@liverpool.ac.uk

Advice for LSTM members applying for the local branch Local Fund
LSTM UCU members are part of the same branch at University of Liverpool UCU. In addition to the national Fighting Fund, LSTM staff are able to use our branch Local Fund for additional need as set out above.
For LSTM related claims to Local Fund, please see this webform (requires LSTM login), or enquire for any problems making a claim at: laut@liverpool.ac.uk

Process for all members making a Local Fund Claim:

• When to make a LF claim: You are advised to make Local Fund claims for distinct phases of action as these arise.
• Evidencing LF claims: Rather than waiting for payslips you can claim up-front as soon as days of action are known. You can simply supply CORE/ESS ‘My Time’ scans/screenshots or equivalent evidence, this will result in avoiding multiple claims over several months). If you have difficulties evidencing action please submit your claim and explain any difficulties on the webform.
• Rates available: you can specify a lump sum of your choice. For the lump sum, please indicate desired funds required from £50-£350 in £50 increments, e.g. if you require £50, £100, £150 etc. Note – We continue to recommend a £50-£600 suggested range for legacy Marking and Assessment Boycott related claims.
• Casualised staff and other staff facing precarious contracts or similar difficulties should also consider applying for the Local Fund to offset costs arising from strike action in these circumstances.
• If you have further imminent costs arising due to the action beyond the Local Fund’s normal rate, please explain these on Webform (see link above).
• This scheme is operated by the branch committee and not UCU national.
• You should only apply for this scheme if you are seeking coverage of deductions above national Fighting Fund daily rate (where this is available for specific actions) and need further support as a result of pay deductions for participating in industrial action.
• Please supply the total number of days you were on strike, including the first three days (if you work part time, you can supply this as a decimal if required).
• You need to be a valid member paying the correct subscription rate (check here).
• The Local Fund is only available for members who completed the full period of that industrial action.
• If you cannot for some reason meet the above requirements e.g. if you did not take action on all strike days, please contact the branch urgently and ask to speak to a branch officer.

The online form requires –

• Your choice of payment type/ rate (see options above).
• Your full name, residential address and UCU membership number.
• An explanation of the circumstances of your Local Fund claim.
• Documentation indicating strike days, e.g. you can download payslips from CORE or ESS (please submit in PDF or JPEG format).
• Please outline the specific strike action/dates your claim refers to.
• For enquires: lucu@liverpool.ac.uk or see further branch contact options.
• If you would like to request a discussion with a UCU branch official to discuss your Local Fund claim, please contact the branch using details shown above.

For any difficulties or questions regarding the form, please contact the branch office by email (lucu@liverpool.ac.uk)