Up to 111 jobs at the University of Aberdeen could be lost as part of a £10 million savings plan.
The university court – the institution’s governing body – said the university faces a “stark” challenge and “decisive action” is needed to protect its future.
It has agreed the £10 million savings plan to meet its target of breaking even by 2028.
The court said it is committed to reducing staff numbers by voluntary means as far as possible and enhanced retirement and voluntary severance schemes will open next week.
However it said compulsory redundancies cannot be ruled out in the future, though they remain a last resort.
Staff were told the news on Thursday in an email from Gary McRae, interim senior governor, and Professor Peter Edwards, principal and vice-chancellor.
The message said future staffing budgets will be informed by indicative student/staff ratios.
It states: “Based on current indicative modelling, the papers presented to court showed that the total reduction in our academic workforce could be up to 111 full-time equivalent.
“Importantly, however, the focus of the decision made by court was to reduce our costs, not to reduce our workforce by a specific number.”
The message says that after two years of deficit, the institution is currently forecasting a £4 million surplus for the end of its financial year on July 31.
However it said much of this is due to “one-off savings and income which cannot be relied on to occur again in future years, and which mask the underlying structural deficit”.
The court said the £10 million savings plan is needed to ensure financial stability, eradicate annual uncertainty, and generate surpluses for investment.
Prof Edwards said: “Scottish universities have never been more challenged.
“Decisive action is needed to protect the future of our university and allow us to return to a more stable footing to grow and succeed in a way that meets the needs of the communities we serve.”
Dan Cutts, co-chair of the University and College Union’s Aberdeen branch said: “This is absolutely devastating for the workforce. There is a lot of anger, distress and worry amongst our members who have been working tirelessly to support their students.
“Our members are baffled as to why senior management are choosing to make these drastic job cuts when the university’s financial situation has improved and they report we are in surplus. Management plans are illogical and will be damaging to the student experience here at Aberdeen University.
“UCU will be gauging the feelings of our membership over the next few days and there is no doubt that our union will be fighting back against these devastating cuts.”
UCU members at the university took strike action earlier this spring in a dispute over job cuts, while there has also been industrial action at a number of other institutions around Scotland over proposed cuts.
In Holyrood on Thursday, First Minister John Swinney said ministers expect the University of Aberdeen to take account of issues set out in the Gillies review.
The review was set up to investigate the serious financial situation at the University of Dundee and its report was published last year.
Mr Swinney said: “Ministers would expect the University of Aberdeen – and any university – to take due account of the issues that were set out in the Gillies review and the terms of the availability of funding through the Scottish Funding Council.
“I encourage the University of Aberdeen to engage constructively with all interested parties to ensure that that is the case.”
He also said Ben Macpherson, the minister for innovation, technology and tertiary education, would be very happy to meet the trade unions.
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