University of Dundee staff vote in support of more strike action

Staff at the University of Dundee have again voted in favour of strike action in their long-running dispute with management over job cuts and possible compulsory redundancies.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) voted by 79% to back more walkouts, from a turnout of 58%. Industrial action short of a strike was supported by 89% of voting members.

The union, which includes academic and support staff, has already staged 28 days of strike action in the city in the last year.

The latest ballot was required as the time limit on a previous strike vote had expired.

The dispute between staff and management began in November 2024 when the university announced a potential £30m deficit and "inevitable" job cuts.

The union previously said more than 600 staff had left the university since then, with the recently closed voluntary redundancy scheme expected to take the number to more than 750.

The UCU said the university's senior management was still refusing to rule out using compulsory redundancies in future.

Its Dundee branch co-president Melissa D'Ascenzio said: "Members will decide what industrial action takes place in the coming weeks and months to defend jobs.

"But we're clear that the first step to finally resolving the dispute is for management to withdraw the threat of compulsory redundancies."

The university has been approached for comment.

The Scottish government provided £40m in emergency funding last year to help stabilise the university, with ministers expecting at the time that this would limit job losses to about 300.