A coalition of unions and political groups has held a rally calling on university staff to vote for strike action in January.

Three trade unions – the University and Colleges Union (UCU), Unite, and Unison – which together represent both academic and support staff at the University, are currently balloting for national strike action, with the vote set to close on Friday 28 November.

The ballot follows the University and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) offering a 1.4% pay rise in May, which they described as “the only prudent option” but which the UCU has called “derisory”.

At 12:30pm on Wednesday (19/11), around 40 activists gathered outside Great St Mary’s Church to urge university workers to vote “yes” in the ballot. In addition to members of the three unions, the protest was attended by representatives of Cambridge for Palestine, Your Party Cambridge, and various Marxist groups.

Rose, a member of both Your Party and Unite, said she mainly came to support the strike action but that the protest also had wider aims: “Another big thing is [the University’s] issues to do with trans rights. A couple of weeks ago, there was the announcement about the barring of trans athletes from football and rowing.”

“There has also been so much about Palestine, about how the University has failed to meet the moment in that,” she continued.

The protesters attached banners with their group logos to the Senate House railings and led chants of “Whose university? Our university?” and “Staff Rights. Student Rights. One Struggle,” before a series of speakers voiced their criticisms of the University.

One of the speakers was the SU’s Postgraduate President, Augustin Denis, who shared his core message with Varsity after the protest: “The students stand with the strikers.” Jo Bunkle, Liberation and Campaigns Coordinator at Anglia Ruskin Students’ Union, also spoke at the demonstration.

First to take the microphone was James Clark of the Cambridge UCU, who derided the 1.4% pay offer as “far below inflation” and adding to “a total 30% real terms cut to the wages of university staff over the last 25 years”.

“We are also facing 15,000 redundancies across the university sector, several hundred of which are right here in Cambridge. Cambridge is also one of the most expensive cities in the UK,” he continued.

Clark also urged University Council members to support further arms divestment and condemned recent changes to University policy regarding transgender inclusion in college sports.

Officers from the National Education Union, which represents school staff across the UK, and Cambridge Unite’s engineering branch came to express their solidarity with the other unions. Meanwhile, a student member of Cambridge for Palestine spoke about the links between pro-Palestine and labour activism.

Several speakers highlighted the broader issues facing universities across the country, demanding a better funding model for higher education instead of tuition fee increases. The more radical Marxist members of the coalition called for “a political strike” against the government.

A Your Party Cambridge spokesperson claimed that “one or two days of strike action won’t be enough. It would be necessary to go on strike repeatedly in order to force the government to pay university workers properly.” He also asked workers to sign a Christmas card for the Vice-Chancellor containing their grievances.

The protest received varied reactions from the public, with one passing cyclist heckling at the protesters’ pro-Palestine chants, while another raised their fist in solidarity.

The University of Cambridge has been contacted for comment.