Some redundancies among AgResearch scientists seem likely after a call for voluntary severances at the Invermay Agricultural Centre, Dunedin, and elsewhere in the country gained insufficient offers.
AgResearch chief executive Dr Andy West said yesterday that any staff reductions were "not going to threaten the viability" of overall AgResearch operations at Invermay.
A new Centre for Reproduction and Genomics, involving about 50 staff in a joint AgResearch-University of Otago team, would also be opened, as planned, next month, Dr West added, in an interview.
The centre is housed in a $17 million complex which has been built at Invermay this year.
Funding for the centre is in place for the next three years, but he noted that further efforts would be needed to gain funding beyond that, given that, in July, the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology had declined to fund the related reproduction research.
Dr West gave his reassurance about Invermay's future after being asked whether any planned staff reductions in Dunedin were likely to be relatively modest, because economies were being made throughout the country.
Detailed figures on severance offers in Dunedin were not immediately available, he said in an interview.
However, he agreed that "dozens" of scientists would not be affected in Dunedin.
Further discussions with union representatives would be held next week, he said.
A review of AgResearch science staffing throughout the country was likely, with an outcome expected before Christmas, he said.
AgResearch is a Crown Research Institute which employs 150 scientists and other support staff in Dunedin, 140 of them at Invermay and the others at the AgResearch Molecular Biology Unit, the latter based at the University of Otago.
Dr West has said previously that AgResearch science staff reductions totalling $2.4 million per year were being sought nationally.
PSA officials have estimated that, nationwide, AgResearch staff reductions could be as high as 40 throughout the country, although the final picture remained unclear.
Applications for voluntary severances closed on October 22, with the results initially expected to be announced at the end of last week.
Dr West has said that several factors had contributed to the need to tighten operations, including a downturn in two of the institute's most important client industries: sheep and beef.
The institute's long-term commitment to maintaining unfunded flocks and herds of rare animal genetics also now exceeded its capacity.
Several other government activities, such as those involving doctors, police, and university staff, had gained additional "capital injections" to support pay rises, but AgResearch had not, he said.
