UNIVERSITY lecturers across the UK are today beginning an assessment boycott in a row over changes to pensions.

Under the move by the UCU union, which represents academics and support staff, thousands of students will no longer receive marks or feedback for official assessments.

The row centres on the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), which provides pensions for staff at universities including Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, St Andrews and Stirling.

Universities UK wants to end the final-salary element of the scheme for all USS members and move them to a career average scheme in order to tackle a deficit.

However, the union argues the changes are too simplistic and do not take into account the strengths of the scheme.

UCU Scotland official Mary Senior urged universities not to dock full pay from staff, as some have been threatening to do. She also stressed some institutions had privately been sympathetic to the UCU cause.

"Docking 100 per cent of pay from staff who are continuing to perform the vast majority of their duties is completely unethical and risks causing greater damage to students' education," she said. "Punitive pay docking could lead to lectures and seminars being cancelled as members refuse to work for free."

A Universities UK spokesman previously expressed disappointment about the assessment boycott, saying: "We believe the proposals are the best that can be achieved given the substantial scheme deficit."