Strike action at the University of Aberdeen has been announced for the 12th, 13th, 17th & 18th of March 2026. University and College Union (UCU) members voted to back strike action over cuts earlier this year.
Negotiations are still ongoing and the University’s Industrial Action Working Group are to meet next week.
The university has described the move as “disappointing”, saying they will take every effort to minimise any impact of the action.
The university reopened a voluntary severance and early retirement scheme last year to help find £5.5m in savings, and has refused to take compulsory redundancies off the table.
But further cuts, said the UCU, will put increasing strain on remaining staff, “With these significant job losses, workloads have risen sharply.” said Dan Cutts, the UCU co-chair in Aberdeen.
Hoping that the university can “soon break even”, Principal Edwards said there was still a “lot of work to do”, telling BBC News he hoped redundancies could be avoided. However he added there needed to be a “fundamental look” at the current funding model for universities.
On the rocky road to financial recovery, staff find themselves on the chopping block. Recently, a reported 41 staff members took an offer of a severance package or early retirement. Recruitment at the university has also been frozen in the attempts to save money.
The university’s actions come as they make moves to solve the financial deficit, which is currently at £4.3 million.
