Lecturers and staff at some UK universities stage a fresh round of strikes at the start of new term

LONDON (AP) — Lecturers and other staff at some 40 U.K. universities are staging a new round of strike action in a long-running dispute over pay and work conditions. The walkouts will disrupt college students as many turned up at campus for “freshers’ week,” or their first week at university. The University and College Union, which represents thousands of academic staff, said strike action will take place until Friday at many institutions. The union said members at 140 universities had been due to take part in the walkouts, but the action is now on a much smaller scale and only targeted at “the very worst employers” after deals were struck with many colleges. Institutions affected this week include University of Liverpool, University of Oxford and University of Manchester.