Staff at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) have extended their strike action for the first time in 117 years, with union representatives describing the situation as an 'existential crisis' that leaves researchers 'getting poorer' the longer they remain employed.
The industrial action involves researchers, porters, maintenance and administrative staff who have been striking over pay since June 3. The strike has been extended twice and is currently scheduled to end on August 7.
Pay Negotiations Described as 'Hostile'
Unite the Union representatives for the ICR said pay negotiations have been 'hostile', claiming management intentionally delayed meetings with negotiators and that the four offers received were repurposed iterations of the first offer. The union is calling for the reinstatement of the incremental pay model to ensure staff are compensated each year based on experience and the rising cost of living.
Unite representative Aiden Doyle, 37, a higher scientific officer at the ICR's Children's Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence, told the Press Association: 'All the meetings have been very hostile. We've been on strike for six weeks now. This is an existential crisis. There's no respect.'
Researchers Struggle to Make Ends Meet
Doyle said that if it were not for a promotion he received, he would have to sell his flat and start renting again. 'My wife and I don't live lavish lives. We keep our outgoings low, so that we can do things like cancer research. But it does come a snapping point, and we've hit that definitely. If it wasn't for my promotion I don't think we'd have been able to continue paying our mortgage. We probably would have had to sell and start renting.'
An anonymous drug discovery scientist at the ICR said that after nearly four years, they are 'getting poorer'. The researcher added: 'I am struggling to pay my bills and meet my rent. It's not sustainable for me.'
Inflation Erodes Incomes
Teige Matthews-Palmer, 35, an electron microscopist at the ICR and union representative, said: 'People being recruited were coming in on last year or the previous year's pay, and by doing that, people have lost out 16% against inflation. So people's incomes are worth 16% less now. It's put people in real hardship. We've heard colleagues say that they can't heat and eat in our survey.'
He added that it is common for research scientists to work more than 50 hours per week, with overtime expected and uncompensated. Some colleagues in logistics have taken on cleaning jobs at the ICR to make ends meet.
ICR's Response and Offer
A spokesperson for the ICR said: 'We respect the union's mandate for further industrial action and recognise that this reflects strongly held concerns among members, particularly in relation to pay. The ICR has taken negotiations with the union over the current pay dispute very seriously and approached them in a constructive manner. So far, they have failed to reach a resolution.'
The institute stated it has made an improved pay offer for 2026 and 2027 that targets support at lower-paid staff, including backdated pay adjustments for 2025. For staff who were part of the August 2025 salary review, this would equate to at least a 12.5% salary increase over the three-year period. The ICR added its pay was 'broadly competitive' with other research organisations, noting it is 'operating in a challenging external environment, including funding constraints and rising costs'.
The ICR has been behind major scientific breakthroughs, including the development of Abiraterone, the first treatment for advanced prostate cancer, which has been available on the NHS since 2012.
