Medical staff facing job cuts

AberdeenUniversityhas launched a consultation on redundancies within its medical school.

In July, staff were told their jobscouldbeat risk as partof the university’s efforts to save £1.5million by reducing spending on its school of medicine, medical science and nutrition.

Employees had been offered voluntary severance and early retirementtoreducethenumber of mandatory job losses, and yesterday the scheme officially closed.

But due to a low uptake, the university has already started a consultation to determine what staff could lose their jobs to save the cash.

Dr PaddyMark, chairman of the BritishMedical Association Scotland’s medical academics committee, said: “Implementing compulsory

“Implementing redundancies would be short-sighted”

redundancies would be extremely short-sighted, and the university should reconsider its plans.

“More widely, the threat of redundancy may have a significantly adverse effect on medicine in Scotland by threatening the teaching of medical students as well as discouraging doctors from seeking academic careers, raising doubts about the value of research and teaching amongst the doctors of the future.”

The university would not confirm the number of jobs at risk.

A spokesman said: “We have informed staff the university has commenced a consultation process through the Joint Consultative Committee on Redundancy Avoidance ( JCCRA) with regard to criteria for compulsory redundancy due to the current progress of the scheme.”