BOURNEMOUTH students are missing out on lessons following a walkout by lecturers.

Scores of staff from the town's two universities are thought to be involved in a two-day strike over pay and conditions.

Exams have been rescheduled and lectures and seminars cancelled for the duration of the strike, which started today.

Staff also plan to work to rule when they return to work on Friday and beyond, sticking to a 37-hour week.

Picket lines have been set up outside Bournemouth University buildings in the town centre and at the Talbot campus, as well as outside of the Arts University Bournemouth's headquarters in Wallisdown.

John Brissenden, campaign co-ordinator for the current pay dispute at the University and College Union branch at Bournemouth University, said: "We represent 300 staff at BU and the majority of those are supporting the strike.

"Pay is decided at national level and over the past seven years it has been cut by 15 per cent in real terms."

He said the current offer of 1.1 per cent is not acceptable to union members who have asked for a five per cent pay rise.

And he said members are also concerned about a gender pay gap and the "casualisation" of university jobs. Mr Brissenden said he believes those on strike have the support of students.

The number of staff taking part in the strike was in dispute with a member of staff from Bournemouth University saying that numbers were 'significantly lower' than the 300 estimated by Mr Brissenden.

Dr Ann Luce, senior lecturer in Journalism and Communications and a member of the UCU executive board, who was stood outside of the university's Royal London House site, said: "Bournemouth University has just announced that it is investing £100million in new gateway buildings, but I think if you spoke to my students, they don't want new extra buildings, they want an extra 30-minutes of my time in class.

"What we are trying to do is shed light on the inequality between men and women for which there is a 12-per-cent pay gap.

"Also, we do this job because we care about our students, teaching and research. We don't want to harm our students by them missing lectures, but actually many of them stand with us including the Students' Union at Bournemouth University (SUBU)."

Marian Mayer, who leads a group of learning development lecturers and is also chair of Bournemouth University's UCU, said: "We have hourly-paid lecturers who can't get a lease, tenancy or a credit card because their contracts say that they work from January to June for eight hours are week, meaning that they have to live on a year to year basis.

"We worked out that you would earn more if you worked in a supermarket based on the hourly rate for how much staff get paid divided by how many hours they actually work. I typically work a 60-hour week and am paid for 37-hours."

Dr William Proctor, senior lecturer in media, culture and communications and vice-chair of the UCU, said: "I would like to bring attention to the fact that our pay has been cut by 15-per-cent since 2009 and yet the vice-chancellor is on £227,000 a year and has just been given a three-per-cent pay rise.

"If you can imagine, his three-per-cent could pay for all of our one-per-cent payrise."

Paul Ward, professor of animation studies at the Arts University Bournemouth and the branch chair of the UCU for the AUB, said: "We are in dispute over pay and casualisation. A lot of staff across the country are on zero-hour contracts. I will add, to their credit, the AUB are moving away from that.

"But we are out on strike with the personal hopes and thoughts of being in solidarity with lecturers across the country."

General Secretary for the UCU, Sally Hunt, said: "A 1.1 per cent pay offer is an insult to hardworking staff, especially in light of the 5 per cent pay rise vice-chancellors have enjoyed while holding down staff pay.

"Industrial action which impacts on students is never taken lightly, but members feel that they have been left with no alternative. If the employers wish to see a swift end to this dispute, and avoid further disruption, they need to come back to the table with a much-improved offer."