Under fire Richmond-upon-Thames College to announce job losses details
6 May 2010
Members of UCU at Richmond-upon-Thames College will tomorrow find out if their jobs are in danger. The college is expected to unveil controversial plans for redundancies and severe cutbacks across the college.
Staff have been told that the college has a £3million deficit. However, the union has deep concern about the way the deficit has arisen in such a popular college, at a time when funding for 16-19 education was largely intact. The college's own publicity material refers to the college as the top performing college in London.
The union fears that the cuts and redundancies could well be the first stage of a series of such attacks if the principal takes forward his published 'vision' of a college with up to 2,000 fewer students. To realise the 'vision' the principal would have to sack half the teaching staff. The union fears the college could become trapped in a spiral of decline if a culture of cuts takes hold.
UCU is calling for the college to abandon current plans and for compulsory redundancy plans to be withdrawn. The union says the positive way forward is for genuine consultations and negotiations to take place on the future of the college, based upon detailed research.
Yesterday (5 May), the college was hit by unprecedented levels staff disruption as UCU members took industrial action. Members were on picket lines from 7am and at 12.15 college teachers were joined at the main gate by support workers and students as hundreds protested against the cuts. The action was suspended after lunch to allow students to attend the annual universities fair involving representatives from 70 institutions.
UCU branch chair at Richmond-upon-Thames College, Dave Carrier, said: 'We did not want to strike on Wednesday, but we had been left with no alternative. Our voices are not being heard; so-called consultations have been a charade. A tiny group of senior managers and governors have been discussing fundamental changes to all aspects of the college since October.
'There has been absolutely no consultation on the content of any of the key proposals. Staff only found out what was being discussed a few days before Easter. All over the college there is anger, uncertainty, worry and fear for the future. Teachers want to know how such a popular college could have been brought to this parlous situation.
'We simply cannot see the logic of launching such a damaging strategy before we even know the local and national election results, and before new funding arrangements have taken hold. A strategy based upon assessing real events would be much more sensible, rather than the worst-case scenario speculation we are being offered at present.'
The union fears that the cuts and redundancies could well be the first stage of a series of such attacks if the principal takes forward his published 'vision' of a college with up to 2,000 fewer students. To realise the 'vision' the principal would have to sack half the teaching staff. The union fears the college could become trapped in a spiral of decline if a culture of cuts takes hold.
UCU is calling for the college to abandon current plans and for compulsory redundancy plans to be withdrawn. The union says the positive way forward is for genuine consultations and negotiations to take place on the future of the college, based upon detailed research.
Yesterday (5 May), the college was hit by unprecedented levels staff disruption as UCU members took industrial action. Members were on picket lines from 7am and at 12.15 college teachers were joined at the main gate by support workers and students as hundreds protested against the cuts. The action was suspended after lunch to allow students to attend the annual universities fair involving representatives from 70 institutions.
UCU branch chair at Richmond-upon-Thames College, Dave Carrier, said: 'We did not want to strike on Wednesday, but we had been left with no alternative. Our voices are not being heard; so-called consultations have been a charade. A tiny group of senior managers and governors have been discussing fundamental changes to all aspects of the college since October.
'There has been absolutely no consultation on the content of any of the key proposals. Staff only found out what was being discussed a few days before Easter. All over the college there is anger, uncertainty, worry and fear for the future. Teachers want to know how such a popular college could have been brought to this parlous situation.
'We simply cannot see the logic of launching such a damaging strategy before we even know the local and national election results, and before new funding arrangements have taken hold. A strategy based upon assessing real events would be much more sensible, rather than the worst-case scenario speculation we are being offered at present.'
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