UCU ballot for strikes at Edinburgh University following ‘unnecessary’ budget cuts

The University and College Union (UCU) opened a strike ballot on April 7 after the university’s principal and vice chancellor, Sir Peter Mathieson, vowed to cut £140 million from the budget, citing the current spending as “simply unaffordable”.

The union is demanding the university retract the possibility of compulsory lay-offs.

Despite Sir Peter’s statement announcement that “around 350 staff have been accepted for voluntary severance”, the possibility of compulsory redundancies cannot be ruled out “at this stage” and the decision will be determined in a summer meeting at the university’s Court.

According to the BBC, the result of the ballot will not be available until after it closes on May 20, yet an earlier consultative ballot indicated strong support from staff for strike action with 75% of UCU members willing to strike and 85% willing to “take part in action short of strikes” like restricting work related contact to their allocated shift hours and refusing to cover work for absent colleagues or take on additional duties.

This comes after the UCU expressed doubt over the need for a a major financial cut, describing it as “a truly staggering figure” which is “completely out of proportion to the financial pressures on Britain’s third wealthiest university” and that cuts of this nature are “unnecessary”.

Branch president of the UCU, Sophia Woodman, urged university senior managers “to listen to what staff are telling them, rule out compulsory redundancies and engage with the union”.

She said: “There is no need for the university to be making cuts of £140m.

“Cuts of the size university senior management are planning will have a a devastating impact not just on the university’s future, but also on the city and our local economy”.

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Similar cuts were cited by the University of Dundee in February which resulted in 3 weeks of strike action. However, the university’s interim principal, Professor O’Neill, has since warned of up to 700 posts at risk of removal. This resulted in a second UCU ballot with 70% of the vote in favour of strike action. Staff from the University of Dundee are expected to strike on Tuesday, April 29^th.

Industrial action over likely job cuts is confirmed to take place in the upcoming weeks across several UK universities such as in Birmingham, Durham, Keele, and notably Cardiff who have announced a marking and assessment boycott (MAB).

Edinburgh University saw major strike action last year with various staff strikes and a controversial marking boycott that impacted graduating students, leaving some without graded dissertations.

Responding to the ballot, Sir Peter said: “We appreciate many of the concerns raised by colleagues, students and others in our community, and we are making every effort to listen.

“However, we have been very clear that our current financial position is not sustainable and we are not immune to the challenges that the higher education sector is currently facing”.