Thousands of students face disruption to their graduation celebrations after university lecturers announced strike action across every graduation day this summer in a bitter row over plans to cut 100 jobs.
Staff at Glasgow Caledonian University will walk out throughout the institution’s graduation ceremonies after union leaders insisted they had “no alternative” but to escalate industrial action in a dispute over redundancies.
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) said the strikes were deliberately timed to have the “biggest impact”, with lecturers hoping to pile pressure on university bosses over proposals they claim could devastate teaching and research.
The dispute centres on plans to reduce around 100 staff posts following a sharp decline in income from international students.
Union leaders say staff have been left furious after management rejected what they described as a fully costed alternative plan designed to avoid job losses.
Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland University Lecturers Association (EIS ULA) will begin a three-day strike this week before staging further walkouts on August 4 and throughout September, ensuring every graduation ceremony is affected.
EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said the decision had not been taken lightly.
“Any move to strike action is taken as a last resort, but our members at Glasgow Caledonian University have been left with no alternative as they seek to fend off the university’s cuts agenda,” she said.
She argued staff were fighting not only to save jobs but also to protect teaching standards, research and students’ education.
Dr Nick McKerrell, secretary of the university’s EIS branch, accused senior management of refusing to rule out compulsory redundancies despite the university holding what he described as £95 million in cash reserves.
“The proposed loss of 100 jobs has provoked fury across campus,” he said.
“A fraction of those reserves could be used to save jobs in the short term.”
He added that lecturers hoped graduating students and their families would stand alongside staff during the ceremonies.
“Taking industrial action is not something any member of staff takes lightly, but we will not let our colleagues at risk of redundancy stand alone,” he said.
“We have received great support from our students in our campaign against redundancies.”
University chiefs insisted they were doing everything possible to ensure graduation ceremonies go ahead.
A Glasgow Caledonian University spokesperson said the institution’s priority was ensuring graduates and their families could celebrate “their special day”, adding that campuses would remain open and disruption would be kept to a minimum.
The university said it had been forced to review staffing after suffering a substantial fall in international student income and stressed that no final decisions had yet been taken.
Management confirmed they are now considering feedback from a formal consultation before deciding how to proceed.
The row comes as universities across Britain continue to grapple with mounting financial pressures caused by falling overseas student numbers, rising operating costs and growing budget deficits, leaving many institutions facing difficult decisions over staffing and spending.
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