LECTURERS at a Scottish university are to be balloted on strike action in a row over job cuts.
The UCU lecturers' union is balloting members at Aberdeen University after accusing officials of refusing to rule out compulsory redundancies.
The university has already implemented a programme of savings worth £8 million with a further £1.5m to be cut next year.
Dr Andrew Mackillop, Aberdeen UCU representative, said: "Nobody wants to take industrial action, but to see university managers now moving ahead with plans to make staff redundant despite an agreement for no compulsory redundancies leaves us with no option.
"We have worked hard over the summer to help identify the savings the university says are necessary and to now go ahead with plans to sack staff beggars belief."
However, a spokesman for the university insisted officials had no plans to introduce compulsory redundancies.
He said: "In March, the university identified the need to save £10.5m in order to invest in future growth, protect against rising costs and ensure we can meet the increasing challenges and competition within the sector.
"We have made significant progress in achieving this with £8.6m of savings achieved through a voluntary severance and efficiencies programme.
“There are no plans to introduce a scheme of compulsory redundancies across the university. We have consistently said this and, as previously agreed with unions, where savings are required in individual schools these will be implemented using natural staff turnover and our normal redundancy avoidance procedures."
The ballot is the second time this year that members have been asked to take industrial action over redundancy proposals. In a previous ballot in June members overwhelmingly voted for action, but strikes were called off after university managers agreed not to make compulsory redundancies.
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