Group of staff at Moray College UHI at risk of being made redundant
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A NUMBER of members of staff at Moray College UHI are at risk of being made redundant, the college's chief executive has said.
Moray College said it is looking to reduce its annual staffing costs by around £400,000 throughout the rest of 2020 due to "increasing challenges" in balancing its budget.
The college said a number of factors, including the impact on income caused by the coronavirus pandemic, had led to the need to reduce costs.
However, an anonymous letter sent to the Northern Scot by an employee said Moray College is in "huge debt" due to financial mismanagement and a recent management restructure. The letter added that there is a "climate of fear" among employees.
David Patterson, chief executive and principal at Moray College UHI, said: "This is a difficult moment for all colleges, with many having to follow the same route as us in terms of savings. The college is at the start of a process to secure approval and funding from the Scottish Funding Council to achieve these limited staffing reductions.
"We are consulting closely with both our trades unions and our staff representatives on this, and I have met in person with the small group of staff who are at risk of redundancy, and who we are proactively supporting to secure other vacant posts within the college where possible.
"This is a time when our community needs us most, and we are having to make difficult decisions both to balance the books, and to ensure at the same time that we are fully able to support our community and our local employers with the re-skilling and up-skilling provision that will enable economic recovery to happen more quickly in Moray.”
The anonymous employee, though, said staff are "scared" and there is a lack of transparency.
"The college is in a huge amount of debt due to poor financial mismanagement," the staff member said in a letter.
"The management have spoken to us about being transparent in their decisions but really have not discussed anything with us.
"There is a climate of fear and the employees at the coalface are scared. The senior managers blame the financial situation on national bargaining but this not the truth. They restructured the management and didn't work out whether they could afford it.
"Now as a result we may not be able to pay our mortgages because our jobs are in the balance.
"We do a brilliant job supporting students to get their educational goals but the board do not value us."
It remains unclear which departments at the college would be hit by the potential redundancies.
Principal Mr Patterson said that the staff are valued, especially after the recent success of the college.
He added: “I hope that I’ve conveyed in my Campus Conversation articles what a fantastic job I think our college staff do for us here in Moray.
"We have had three years now of record student achievements in the college.
"We are also actively planning for the multi-million-pound Growth Deal investments that both the Scottish and Westminster Governments will be making in Moray, through us, in the next few years."
