A total of around 180 members of staff at the University of Exeter have left voluntarily as part of a release scheme, it has been revealed.
According to the University’s latest annual financial statement, the figure of 180 staff members who voluntarily resigned as part of The Exeter Release Scheme (TERS) has led to an impact of £8.5 million less being spent on staffing costs over the course of a whole year.
As part of TERS, staff who tendered their notice before the 31st July 2024 had access to an enhanced severance package amounting to £8.7 million with back pay of 14 months. Many had left by the end of August 2024.
The annual report stated numerous reasons for TERS being opened. These include the implementation of an already agreed upon pay reward of five per cent to existing staff members, investments in digital and sustainability strategies, investments for strategies in favour of the University’s ‘Strategy 2030’ and a slower growth in income. Combined, these factors led to the University taking “corrective action”, creating TERS.
In a statement provided to Exeposé from the UCU, a spokesperson said, “there are numerous problems with voluntary severance schemes such as TERS. You can lose some of your best people, who are confident they can get a job elsewhere, and you can end up paying a lot in severance payments to people who (in some cases) planned to retire soon anyway. (According to the FT, the uni’s compensation for loss of office spend in 23/24 was £8.8m, which was an increase of over 700 per cent on the previous year.) We have seen significant issues on the ground following TERS, as we have lost important expertise and institutional knowledge, as well as headcount. This is particularly acute in professional services, especially IT. In some cases, it has been difficult to continue work because it is stuck in the IT accounts of people who took TERS and didn’t have time to hand it over. As a union, we think it is unlikely TERS is truly leading to any worthwhile ‘efficiencies,’ but has instead continued a trend of squeezing ever more from hardworking staff. Staff and cash are (perhaps the most) vital assets, and TERS means we have less of both right now.”
“We have seen significant issues on the ground following TERS, as we have lost important expertise and institutional knowledge, as well as headcount.”
UCU spokesperson
The creation and implementation of TERS has led to opposition from the Exeter chapter of the University and College Union (UCU). At the chapter’s annual general meeting in June 2024, the UCU passed a motion of no confidence as a result of concerns about the scheme. The motion came primarily due to a lack of clear financial details which informed the formation of the scheme which would have been provided to Exeter City Council for approval but not to staff members. In the same motion, the chapter resolved to make preparations for future industrial action after prolonged strikes took place during the 2022-23 academic year. However, no action has yet been taken.
A senior UCU official has previously told Exeposé, “We hope that industrial action is not needed, but if the credible threat to jobs remains, then members will be given the option of taking industrial action to defend jobs… staff do not take such action lightly and it is extremely costly, so if this does happen it is only fair that we plan to have maximum impact and disruption on the operations of the University.”
“If the credible threat to jobs remains, then members will be given the option of taking industrial action to defend jobs.”
UCU spokesperson
They went on to say, “Senior leadership have not been sufficiently open and transparent about university finances or their strategic plans to establish that cuts to existing staff are warranted. The university currently makes a surplus and has significant cash balances.”
When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the University said, “All universities are facing long-term external pressures from the falling real-term value of home undergraduate fees and declining international student numbers. At Exeter we foresaw these challenges and acted proactively, taking concerted action across our operations to ensure we sustain our strong financial position and deliver our ambitious strategy, whilst protecting our student and staff experience. Our actions have included driving up the efficiency and cost recovery of our research and teaching activity, reducing our non-pay spending where possible, using digital transformation to develop new ways of working and offering an entirely voluntary release scheme to colleagues.”
