Budget cuts put universities in a bind - Luce Samoisette and Daniel Zizian, Montreal Gazette

The current financial context illustrates how dysfunctional and particularly disruptive the government’s demand is with regard to sound university management: With just four months remaining until the end of the fiscal year, the winter session is already planned and all personnel, specifically lecturers and auxiliary teaching staff, have been hired. This leaves most universities with essentially no room to manoeuvre. Approximately 80 per cent of a university’s operating budget covers expenses related to remuneration. Such expenses are difficult to reduce, especially in the short term, without layoffs, pay cuts or the reopening of collective agreements. http://www.montrealgazette.com/opinion/Opinion+Budget+cuts+universities+bind/7801738/story.html