UCU to fight 250 job losses at University of Wolverhampton

The university has announced a redundancy programme which involves the loss of 250 jobs (one in ten staff) in a bid to save just over £8 million.
 
The union said it remains opposed to redundancies and is determined to protect jobs and opportunities for students and also the services that the staff provide for the local community. There will be a voluntary redundancy scheme in October. However, it is likely that there will also be compulsory redundancies with dismissals likely to take place from March 2010.
 
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'Government rhetoric suggests that education will not be a victim of the recession and it will play a key role in our recovery. Sadly, individual universities' actions, coupled with pruning of the education budget, means what is actually happening is that we are making it much harder for people to get a high quality education when they need it most. We will be fighting the redundancies at Wolverhampton, as we will be at other further and higher education institutions across the country, because we know education can, and must be allowed to, play a full role in helping the UK recover.'
 
Chair of the UCU Wolverhampton Negotiating Committee, Loraine Westcott, said: 'Instead of attacking jobs and educational opportunities through a programme of redundancies, the university should be lobbying the government to provide the funds for students from all backgrounds to realise their potential.  UCU will be joining with other campus unions at the University of Wolverhampton to launch a public campaign against cuts and redundancies and to promote the social and economic regeneration of Wolverhampton and the wider Black Country.'