Protests at Birmingham Metropolitan College over job cuts

UCU members at Birmingham Metropolitan College will be staging protests on Tuesday lunchtime in a row over plans to axe 27 jobs. Staff will be protesting outside the main entrance to the Matthew Boulton campus, the Sutton Coldfield campus and the James Watt campus from 12:15pm.

The college says its needs to make savings and has revealed plans that leave 123 staff at risk of redundancy. All the posts set to be cut are lecturing roles and could hit courses including business computing, English, maths, science, engineering, music, plumbing, law, art & design and history.

UCU said the college had failed to make the case for the cuts and that the process was being rushed through with undue haste. The union also questioned the college's management after it was revealed that the college is still advertising jobs at the same time it is saying it needs to cut posts.

The college axed 300 staff just two years ago and UCU says the college should not be back in a position where it is looking for further job losses.

UCU regional support official Teresa Corr said: 'Birmingham Metropolitan College axed 300 staff just two years ago, so we find it astonishing that we are back in a situation where the college says more jobs must go. It is even more incredible when you consider that the college is seeking to sack staff while still advertising other positions.

'The whole process is being rushed through with staff being dragged into redundancy meetings. The college needs to halt the process and sit down with us and look at alternatives. Staff are rightly angry, as we will see at the protests on Tuesday.'