Heriot-Watt Staff Vote for Further Strike Action

Staff at Heriot-Watt University have voted to support further strike action.

The vote is part of an ongoing dispute over job cuts and compulsory redundancies.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) voted by 70 per cent to support strike action. A further 85 per cent backed action short of a strike. This includes working to contract and refusing to cover for absent colleagues.

The new strike mandate will last for 12 months. Staff have already taken 12 days of strike action since the dispute began. The latest strikes took place on Friday, August 7th, and Monday, August 10th.

Job cut disputes

The dispute centres on proposed cuts at the university. UCU has raised concerns about the Department of Languages and Intercultural Studies. The department faces proposals to cut 11 full-time equivalent jobs. Plans would also see Chinese and German degree programmes closed.

The union says management has moved away from an earlier commitment to avoid compulsory redundancies in the department before spring 2027.

Jobs are also due to be lost through the university’s Scholar programme. The programme provides online learning for Scottish schools.

UCU branch president Kate Sang said the ballot result showed staff remained determined to protect jobs. She also called for the university to rule out compulsory redundancies.

University response

Heriot-Watt says it is facing significant financial challenges. The university says it needs to reduce staffing to protect its long-term financial position.

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A university spokesperson said: “Like other universities, we are operating in the context of significant financial challenges facing the sector. To safeguard our long-term financial sustainability, we are taking measured and evidence-based action to ensure that our resources are aligned with an academic portfolio that is relevant, academically strong and financially sustainable.”

The university said it had worked closely with trade unions to try to resolve the dispute, while respecting UCU members’ right to seek a mandate for strike action.

Heriot-Watt says it proposed deferring compulsory redundancies and reducing the number of job losses as part of a wider package to resolve the dispute. The university said UCU had not accepted the proposal.

It said most of the required staff reductions had already been achieved through voluntary measures, including leaving vacancies unfilled, voluntary leaver packages, reductions in working hours and redeployment.

The university said it was now working towards a total remaining staff reduction of fewer than 10.

“We remain willing to continue discussions and will now consider the next steps needed to ensure our programmes remain academically strong, properly resourced and financially sustainable,” the spokesperson said.

The possibility for further strikes

The new mandate allows UCU members to take further industrial action over the next 12 months. Further strikes could take place in the coming months, with disruption potentially continuing into the 2026/27 academic year.

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