In November 2011 all admin staff at Lancaster University received a letter from VC Paul Wellings. It informed them that they will face restructuring, redeployment and redundancies between now and spring, as part of the ongoing Business Process Review. When news of national cuts to education hit, the University managers assured us that at Lancaster it would be “business as usual.” But now it seems that cuts are being made: fast, quietly and without effective consultation.

Administrative staff now face an uncertain future, since “some reduction in numbers of administrative roles is anticipated” as part of the ongoing Business Processes Review. Those who remain will face increased workloads, redeployment and less ability to negotiate fair working conditions. We must note here that this is not a gender neutral issue. It is part of a wider trend: with austerity restructuring women workers have become particularly vulnerable. Low-paid and part-time jobs are frequently the first to be cut.

There are also concerns amongst teaching staff and students, despite assurances from the University that they will not be affected. Currently departmental admin staff perform a wide range of functions within departments, including admissions and pastoral work. There is concern that as a result of centralization and job reductions, much of the work currently undertaken by admin staff – particularly work beyond their official duties - will fall to academics. As a result there will be less time for teaching and less time for research. This will obviously have implications for the quality of pastoral and teaching contact received by students.

For these reasons, and more, we reject all redundancies of administrative staff proposed as part of the Business Processes Review. We call on the University to maintain all current administrative staff positions and to assure us that any redeployment of existing staff will not go ahead without explicit, organised consultation with admin and teaching staff and with students and their respective unions.

Signed