Ulster University to cut up to 450 jobs

The chairman of the UU branch of the University and College Union (UCU), which represents a large number of staff employed by the university, said the cuts represent “a direct threat to the quality of education” students receive.

Norman Hagan described the announcement as “deeply alarming and unsustainable”.

“Removing hundreds of staff will fundamentally damage the student experience and weaken academic provision,” he said.

Hagan argued that decisions of this magnitude “if forced through would have far-reaching detrimental consequences for students, local communities, and the wider regional economy.”

He added that the union will “strongly resist” compulsory redundancies.

“Our members deserve full transparency, genuine consultation, in line with legal obligations, as well as the opportunity to challenge the assumptions underpinning these decisions.

“Any process that falls short of this will be robustly contested and our members will not be afraid to take action to challenge these decisions.

“We will not stand idly by and let our university flounder through government or university neglect,” he said.