Union claims that hundreds of employees at St Andrews University could lose their jobs or have their pay cut have again been dismissed by the Fife institution.
As revealed by The Courier on Wednesday, Unite, Unison and UCU warned that the lowest paid and most vulnerable members of staff would be hardest hit by restructuring.
But vice-principal Stephen Magee has branded the allegations “unequivocally false” and “scaremongering.”
Reiterating that very few face losing their jobs, he said, “There is no question of this university making hundreds of people redundant. Despite these hugely difficult economic times our government funding alone was cut by 10.7% this year this claim is simply not true.”
Reviews and restructuring are under way in the university’s residential and business services and IT and business improvement units.
The aim, the university said, was to improve services for students and staff, not cut jobs. It had made it clear, it said, only a few would be made redundant and that they may be redeployed.
However, the university was legally compelled to notify all staff their posts may be at risk.
Mr Magee said, “One of the qualities that has defined St Andrews in recent years is our determination to avoid compulsory redundancies wherever possible and, despite the enormous financial pressures in the public sector, it is vitally important to stress that we remain committed to that ideal.
“We are trying to save and protect jobs wherever possible, and that may mean a small number of posts become redundant and some staff are asked to change the way they work.”
He added, “We have asked the unions to join with us in doing everything possible to alleviate unnecessary anxieties and had hoped that they would respond positively. It is deeply disappointing and very concerning to see this type of scaremongering.
“We wish there was another, less prescriptive way to approach this, but like every employer we are bound by the need to observe strict legal process.
“It is very regrettable that the process negotiated between university leadership and trades unions compels us to send letters to a large number of people when in fact only a very small number may be at risk of redundancy.
“This is undoubtedly a cause of unnecessary anxiety, as are misleading public claims about our reviews.”