Lecturers at Britain's largest campus university were reluctantly at work today after a High Court injunction stopped a planned strike at London Metropolitan.
Furious union officials said their campaign against the imposition of new contracts would continue - next week members will discuss whether to hold a new ballot on industrial action.
The High Court granted an injunction sought by the university management after finding the lecturers' union Natfhe had not fulfilled a number of technical requirements, such as specifying which site members worked at. The dispute has been simmering ever since London Guildhall merged with the University of North London to form London Met, with Guildhall academic staff refusing to accept more "managerial" UNL-style contracts.
Brian Roper, vice-chancellor of London Met, has said he is prepared to talk to the union "any time, any place, anywhere". The union insists it is also eager to negotiate as long as there are no preconditions.
Paul Mackney, Natfhe general secretary, said: "The university's use of anti-trade union legislation to prevent our members from exercising their legitimate right to strike is deplorable, and will only increase the determination of staff to continue the campaign. The issue is whether there is management by sensible negotiation or management by diktat and confrontation, which some managers seem to have chosen.
"We shall now consider ways of escalating the campaign, including continuing and strengthening the existing academic boycott. We shall consider re-balloting all of our members and [will] find appropriate actions in order to bring the dispute to a successful conclusion."
The university has made no statement today.
Greg Barnett, Natfhe chair at the university, yesterday said he was "sad and angry" that the university management had chosen to go to court over the dispute. He said: "The fact that a vice chancellor who claims he is not anti-union uses bullying anti-union legislation to crush Natfhe speaks volumes about his attitude... They want to rub our noses in it."
The union was prepared to negotiate with university bosses, but would not agree to preconditions - such as formally relinquishing the old contracts - before doing so, he said.
