Strike ballot opens over university job cuts

Staff at the University of Sussex are voting on whether to go on strike, the University and College Union (UCU) has announced.

The proposed industrial action is over plans to cut 200 jobs as the Brighton facility attempts to save £35m annually.

It comes after more than 600 staff were put at risk of redundancy across academic, technical and professional services departments.

The university's vice-chancellor, Prof Sasha Roseneil, called the situation "regrettable".

But she added: "very difficult decisions" were needed to "address the financial sustainability crisis affecting UK higher education".

The university cuts follow a huge loss in international students, which Roseneil had blamed on the policies of the previous Conservative government.

Chris Philp MP, Shadow Home Secretary, said student visas had been "abused as a backdoor for mass immigration".

Roseneil said the university had already "significantly reduced expenditure through non-pay savings, vacancy management and cutting our capital programme".

"Despite this, we still need to make further savings to ensure our long‑term financial sustainability," she added.

The union said it had put forward proposals to "protect jobs and support student learning", including allowing staff to volunteer to work part-time. and bringing down senior management pay.

"The University of Sussex is an amazing institution that has built a global reputation for its diverse and critical research and teaching," said Sussex UCU branch president Jo Pawlik.

"The branch is doing everything to ensure it remains that way".

The ballot, which opened on Wednesday, will run until 13 August.

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