Jobs to go at Edinburgh union

Edinburgh University Students’ Association (EUSA) has announced that the organisation is to undergo a restructuring process in order to cut costs after their annual funding was reduced.

All permanent staff are being offered voluntary redundancy in the hope that it will result in as few compulsory redundancies as possible.

Thomas Graham, EUSA president, said: “This decision was not taken lightly but we must act now to ensure the long term stability of the organisation and these proposals will do that.”

EUSA employees were informed on 18 March in a meeting at Teviot. The employees are contractually forbidden from talking to the press.

The news was published on the front page of The Student in the last week before the Easter holidays.

A statement released by EUSA explained the reasons behind the decision: “The organisation wants to refocus resources to deliver better outcomes for students, reduce losses in trading operations, and prepare EUSA for hard times ahead.

“Higher education institutions across the UK are facing financial cuts. These cuts mean that EUSA faces a one percent cut in funding from the university next year and further cuts are expected. This, coupled with the existing financial position, has led EUSA to take the decision to restructure.”

It also stated that this action is being taken to secure the long term financial stability of the association.

In addition the restructure is seen as necessary in order for resources to be used in the most efficient way possible that will benefit its 27,000 student members.

The Journal approached the EUSA president for further comment but were told no new information was to be released as "the process is still ongoing".

Student employees will not be affected. Earlier this year, EUSA capped the hours each of their student employees could work to 15 per week