Staff are the most important asset of any business, but in particular at an academic institution like Dundee University.
With staff costs taking up more than half the university’s expenditure, plugging the £35 million ‘black hole’ was going to inevitably involve reducing the 3,000-strong workforce.
But few could have predicted such a dramatic scale of reduction.
The restructure plans for 632 full time equivalent job losses, more than one in five jobs.
This is quite frankly a devastating number for a university renowned throughout the world for its life sciences courses.
A reduction of this scale will inevitably have an impact on courses offered and the desirability of the university to top students.
How important are University staff and students to Dundee?
Clearly hundreds of highly-skilled academics and staff suddenly being out of employment will have an impact in the city.
The ‘brain drain’ associated with students leaving the city after graduation could now take effect with staff finding jobs in other parts of the UK.
The impact is magnified by a potential reduction in university courses.
Students have a major impact on the city’s economy.
Around one in seven people in Dundee is a student during term-time, the highest ratio in Scotland.
These are people using the cafés, shops, bars and helping to keep the city centre alive.
Any reduction in the number of students will be felt in already challenging economic times.
Dundee University will have to work hard in the aftermath of the restructure to persuade school leavers that it is still the place to pursue their further education.
What needs to be done to counter impact of job losses?
The number of Dundee job losses is the highest since the closure of the Michelin factory in 2020.
The tyre factory had a higher number of staff, at around 850, but the way it was handled was completely different.
The difference was time.
There was around 18 months from the closure announcement to the factory shutting.
By that time only 115 staff failed to secure a ‘positive destination’.
A better comparison is perhaps February 2019, when 374 jobs were lost with the administration of building contractor McGill.
At that time, the city came together to help find alternative work for the McGill workers. Partnership Action for Continuing Employment co-ordinated a jobs fair for local employers to highlight positions available.
Support like this, and more, is needed to help university staff return to work as quickly as possible.
But with job losses in the hundreds, it will not be easy for all the uni staff to find new jobs locally.
What message does Dundee University crisis send about city?
V&A Dundee’s opening in 2018 changed the perception of Dundee. It put the city on everyone’s radar – from tourists, to businesses to students.
Several good news stories have happened since then including Eden Project’s plans to open an attraction, BT moving to new offices for its 1,000 staff, further development of the Waterfront and millions invested through the Tay Cities Deal.
Even the Michelin factory has had a positive conclusion to its story, with Angus business Wilkie taking over the site with the ambition of creating hundreds of new jobs.
The impression that Dundee is a city on the up has now been dented.
This jobs news will be a bitter blow for workers, many of whom have given large chunks of their career to the institution.
Dundee University – and its under-fire leadership team – must now find its way through this crisis.
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