Edinburgh University to strike for 25 days over plans to cut 1,800 jobs

Staff at the University of Edinburgh are due to strike later this month over plans to cut 1,800 jobs.

Around 3,000 members of the University and College Union (UCU) Scotland at Edinburgh University will strike for 25 days over five weeks beginning on September 28.

It comes after staff went on strike for multiple days earlier this year in protest over cuts announced by the principal, Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, in early 2025.

He said that the university was looking to make £140m in savings and that would require hundreds of roles to go.

The UCU said the job losses would be the largest seen at a Scottish university and argued that earlier this year, bosses confirmed the university had no financial deficit.

Already, hundreds of staff have seen their jobs go through “hidden redundancies” where the university has decided not to renew their fixed-term contracts, according to the UCU.

The vote to strike was made earlier in the summer, and since then, the UCU has engaged with the university.

The union called for a commitment to no compulsory redundancies, address hidden redundancies and workloads, engage in meaningful negotiation to avoid redundancies, and to reconsider the balance between staff and non-staff cuts.

UCU Edinburgh branch co-president Lena Wånggren said: “Our members have been clear that compulsory redundancies must not be the university’s answer to its financial challenges.

“Five weeks of strike action is not what anyone wants, but members are prepared to take action to protect jobs.

“UCU members are prepared to take action for our colleagues and our students – we want to safeguard students’ education not just for five weeks in Autumn but for the future.”

UCU general secretary Jo Grady added: “I previously called the cuts at Edinburgh ‘academic vandalism’ and nothing I’ve seen during this dispute gives me any reason to change that view.

“Even at this late stage, it’s not too late for the principal to rule out compulsory redundancies, engage meaningfully with the union and take action to end this dispute.”

Professor Mathieson said: “We are extremely disappointed that, despite ongoing discussions, the University and College Union has given notification of five weeks’ strike action, which will unfairly and deliberately target students’ first semester of the academic year.

“I want to assure our students that our priority is to minimise disruption to their teaching, and we will continue to support them as best as we can.

“While we recognise the right our staff have to take this action, we will continue to do everything we can to mitigate the impacts of that action on our students.

“In addition, we remain firmly committed to constructive and transparent engagement with our joint unions.

“To maintain the University’s position as a world-class institution with a vital role in Scotland’s economic and civic life, we must take responsible, sometimes difficult, decisions to secure its future.”