Sussex university staff prepare to strike over job cuts (From The Argus)

Sussex university staff prepare to strike over job cuts

2:00pm Thursday 3rd December 2009 in

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University lecturers and staff are preparing to strike over plans to axe 115 jobs.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at the University of Sussex have voted unanimously in favour of an industrial action ballot if negotiations with their bosses fail.

The university last week proposed cutting the jobs in its life science, design, English, history, art history, philosophy and informatics and engineering schools to save around £5 million.

Around half of the positions were support staff.

At an emergency meeting this week UCU members voted to reject any compulsory redundancies and passed a motion of no confidence in the proposals made by the university's vice-chancellor Michael Farthing.

They gave officials the authority to launch an industrial action ballot if the plans are not changed.

University of Sussex UCU representative, Paul Cecil, said: “Industrial action is a last resort but UCU members here at Sussex have made it quite clear that they want to ballot for action if management pushes ahead with its deeply flawed strategy.

"If the University of Sussex wants to maintain or enhance its reputation it needs to think very carefully about the impact cutting staff will have.”

A UCU spokesman said it was working alongside the National Union of Students to fight to safeguard the university's standing.

Members of the two groups staged a protest against the latest cuts on Saturday.

The campaign is the latest staged by university staff and students in recent years, following attempts to close its highly rated linguistics and chemistry courses.