At the same time, non-professorial lecturers at Robert Gordon University (RGU) in Aberdeen have been organizing. They are vehemently against industrial action required to stop these job cuts and redundancies. Teacher union the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) recently put out a striking statement. An astounding 83% of the members who voted are in favor of going on strike! It comes after RGU’s announcement last month that up to 135 more redundancies may be necessary, causing deep anger and distress among staff.
The EIS union pointed to the ballot outcome as a clear and unequivocal mandate to move ahead with strike action should that prove necessary. Andrea Bradley, the union's general secretary, emphasized the membership's readiness to oppose the university's proposed cuts.
"This is a clear ballot result, where our members at RGU have indicated their willingness to take strike action, if necessary, to halt the university's programme of cuts." – Andrea Bradley
The union said it was disappointed to have to take a strike vote. They flagged concerns that the position cuts would impact quality of teaching and learning at the university and drive top talent away from U of L.
"The scale of the cuts proposed at RGU is alarming, with significant job losses and a serious impact on learning and teaching across the university." – Andrea Bradley
Steve Olivier, principal and vice-chancellor of Robert Gordon University had the following statement that packed a punch. He underlined that the university has labored around the clock to avoid necessary redundancies at every level.
"The university has, at every opportunity, done all that it can to mitigate against the potential of compulsory redundancies." – Professor Steve Olivier
RGU had just the year before introduced a voluntary severance scheme which saw 130 staff take redundancy last year. According to the university’s announcement in November, this shift is to ensure the institution’s long-term financial sustainability. They’re doing hard work now to position themselves for future success. RGU is saddened by the decision to support strike action. What’s clear is that they’re determined to keep talking to the union as the sector goes through a very difficult time at the moment.
