MSP’s Heard How the University Crisis Has Affected Staff 14 Months In
“It feels like there is no end to this, and staff are literally on their knees.”
This is one of the many words said when Representatives from four universities attended Parliament’s Education Committee yesterday to discuss staff and student experiences and the shortcomings of university management.
The Education, Children and Young People Committee took further separate evidence from Trade Union representatives from four separate institutions. These Include:
Dan Cutts, Joint chair, Aberdeen University UCU branch
Melissa D’Ascenzio, Joint President, Dundee University UCU branch
Sophia Woodman, President, Edinburgh University UCU branch
Stewart Forrester, Unite Senior Representative, Strathclyde University
The session started with identifying where the blame lies, whether it is the level of funding universities are getting, or is it the level of management on the ground.
DUCU, Joint President, Melissa D’Ascenzio, highlighted the Gilles Report, saying:
“capital expenditure at the university had continued at unsustainable levels throughout the period, while the university knew that it had an operational deficit.”
The Unions support that the Higher Education sector needs more money from the Scottish Government, to be sustainable, but that money needs to have very clear oversight and scrutiny on where it’s going to be spent.
UoD Rector and MSP Maggie Chapman showed solidarity with her colleagues striking at Dundee University yesterday. She proceeded to inquire about whether the impacts on students are being accounted for, especially referring to international students.
In response to this, Sophia Woodman emphasised her research on Chinese students and their migration to the UK for higher education. She said that:
“Inevitably, these matters also have an impact on international students. Universities treat these students like cash cows and don’t provide adequate support.”
Maggie Chapman questioned whether students are given fair opportunities to engage in decision-making. To which Melissa responded:
“UoD is engaging in a massive restructuring exercise from schools into faculties, and I feel like students have been given very little voice in that.
“There have been comments from senior management saying that students don’t really care about which faculty they belong to.”
MSP Jackie Dunbar acknowledged that in a recent letter to the Committee, the Minister said that the upcoming Letter of Guidance would set out that the Scottish Funding Council must collate and publish information on Principal pay.
Jackie concluded by asking what are your views on that announcement, and what impact is it going to have? To which Melissa responded:
“The Von Prondzynski report has good recommendations that are not only about transparency in knowing how much they are paid but actually fairness across the board.
“Percentage increases beyond what other staff are awarded and bonuses for these higher managers should be abolished unless made in a transparent manner.
“With the University creating up to 16 new jobs after restructuring, it feels hypocritical that on one side, staff are being told that they will not get their pay award, promotions are frozen, and there is no re-evaluation scheme for jobs.
“But on the other side, another layer of management will be set up with 16 full-time positions, with 4 of them being in the University Executive Group, with potentially high remuneration.”
A common theme throughout the meeting was the transparency of the University Courts. With Stewart Forrester calling them a “Secret Society”. If debates on controversial matters in the national parliament can be broadcast to the public, why can our institutions not do the same?
Sophia Woodman said that:
“There should be a majority of staff and student representation on court, it doesn’t make sense that external members, often with no experience in higher education, are making decisions on our behalf.”
MSP Willie Rennie asked what are we are not getting that needs to change, and what’s your comment about what’s happening so far? To which Melissa responded:
“The UCU reported that trade unions have highlighted staff proposals for income generation, and they have not been considered at all.
“The Scottish Funding Council gave us a 2-year insolvency grace period and we need to start this work now: recruiting students, opening new markets, and having new programmes will take a couple of years to materialise income, and that is exactly what the funding from the SFC gives us time to do.”
Sophia Woodman made a key proposal that:
“Cuts cost money, and restructuring is expensive.”
This statement was backed when Melissa said:
“The management has prioritised restructuring of the University, we have no idea how much money it is going to save over. If you don’t have a growth mindset, we are entering an endless spiral where we are going to lose more staff, where does it stop?”
MSP John Mason argued and asked that some universities got bloated, took on more staff than they should have, and are now coming back to a normal level of staffing. To which Melissa responded:
“At the moment UoD are at the lowest staff members we have been in 20 years.
“If we were to go ahead with the recovery plan, how do you deliver the same Dundee experience and the same programmes and courses that we have delivered over the past 20 years with half of the staff?”
Another shocking finding is that:
“there are a lot of hidden redundancies that are not shown in papers and are not shown in official numbers.”
A big takeaway from the Gilles report is that governance is key. Addressing the financial issue before addressing the governance issue that created it and enabled it will bring us here again in a few years; it is not going to solve the issue. Melissa recommended that:
“A more democratic structure would address some of the challenges and make the senior management more accountable.”
When MSP Paul Mclennan identified the issues regarding consultation with unions. Melissa expressed her disappointment, saying that:
“Despite the Gilles Report, I say this with a heavy heart, despite the University Executive Groups own action plan, which they should have followed, true consultation is lacking.
“In our communication to this committee, we did highlight how the university recovery plan was given to the Unions a day before it was submitted to the Scottish Funding Council.”
After the committee meeting, there was a Rally outside the Scottish Parliament. In which the Jute Journal got the opportunity to interview Maggie Chapman and Melissa D’Ascenzio.
Read the full interview below:
- [TJJ] How do you feel after this session in Parliament?
To which Maggie Chapman responded:
I think today’s session was really important. It is so vital that we hear the voices of workers, that the trade union representatives get to tell the stories about what it’s like on the ground.
Staff working conditions are students’ learning conditions. We really need to make sure that university management takes these issues seriously.
I want to remind the university management that the university is nothing without its staff and students. They are there to serve the staff, students and the wider university community. They need to step up and do some of that work.
On the other hand, Melissa D’Ascenzio said:
This was a great opportunity to put across the position of the union and the staff that we represent. The big missing voice in the debate about sustainability in higher education has been the voice of staff, unions and students.
2. [TJJ] You mentioned that a more democratic and transparent system is a key factor that should be adopted by the UEG. Has any sort of democratic or transparent process been achieved by the current management in the university? If not, how should this process be realised in future?
I wouldn’t go as far as saying they are not transparent at all. There are levels of disclosure.
Recently, Professor Iain Gillesepie took the position of Principal and Vice-Chancellor. Positions like these are being made permanent, and it is a change that has created a disconnect between the managerial structures and what happens on the ground.
Is UEG democratic at the moment? No. Because we don’t elect them. The Principals’ feedback to the Faculty is what the University Executive Group thinks, rather than showing how staff feedback has informed the decisions of UEG.
I am always hopeful that things will get better. But, in terms of transparency, we have a long way to go, especially for our governing bodies.
The DUSA President, Tánaiste Custance, was spotted at the Meeting and Rally. They responded:
It was extremely informative. I don’t know whether it’s reassuring or depressing to find that the issues we have in Dundee are replicated elsewhere in the university system.
From a student perspective, meaningful engagement with students is almost non-existent. I think that’s a shame, as the disengagement we see, in the sense of powerlessness, is something students have.
I’m very glad that the trade unions have been giving evidence, because they’ve shown that by standing together and working together collectively, you can actually make a difference.
The Committee Meeting yesterday was a step up towards wider student and staff representation.