University-owned company to shed more staff

More staff at a University of Otago-owned company will lose their jobs as the Government's capped tertiary funding environment continues to bite.

There has already been one round of redundancies at Foundation Studies Ltd, which offers English language and general tuition to international and domestic students.

A review of teaching positions in August resulted in the loss of 3.6 positions, company board chairman Ian Simpson said yesterday.

A review of management and support positions was under way.

The Otago Daily Times has been told at least three further positions have been axed, but Mr Simpson said he could not confirm that. The review would be completed before the end of the year, he said.

Staff cuts were a direct result of the Government cap on the number of subsidised places for domestic students, he said.

(Domestic students are New Zealand-born students, permanent residents and a few international students from countries whose governments have reciprocal agreements with ours.)

Foundation Studies has had its domestic student places cut by 44% next year. Because most of the courses at Foundation Studies are not a full year and it takes several students to make up one student place, the reduction will impact on hundreds of students.

The staff cuts were "totally beyond the board's control", Mr Simpson said.

"Clearly, it is most unsettling for staff . . . I have been involved in Foundation Studies for a long time now and it is sad and quite unsettling for me, too."

Many of the subsidised places had been filled by students who had not performed well enough at school to obtain university entrance and needed a one-semester intensive boost to make the grade, he said.