Academics at the centre of a mass fight to claw back a 13 per cent pay cut threatened to take the University of Chester to court if it docks a full day's pay from people mounting a two-hour walkout.

The University and College Union (UCU) fired a warning shot at macho bosses who union members said had warned that anyone joining tomorrow's lunchtime strike would face the punishment.

Academic staff across Britain are campaigning for a boost in a puny 1 per cent pay offer - a real-terms cut - on the back of four years of below-inflation settlements.

That's left people with a real-terms 13 per cent hit in their pockets.

Anger has grown in recent weeks as news of bumper wage rises for senior university managers have hit the headlines.

Some have seen their pay go up to as much as half a million pounds a year.

Tomorrow's walkout between 11am and 1pm is the first of three two-hour stoppages planned for the next three weeks.

They take place alongside separate united action on February 6 by members of support workers' union Unison and academics' unions UCU and the Educational Institute of Scotland.

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: "Universities are sitting on billions of pounds of surplus money and they can afford to pay a decent wage to hard-working staff."

UCU counterpart Sally Hunt warned the University of Chester: "It will face us in the courts as we challenge for every penny deducted from our members' pay."