UddannelsesCenter Sydøstdanmark, Digi Mart USA News (Lolland, Denmark): Eleven employees at UddannelsesCenter Sydøstdanmark (UCE) were told on Thursday that management intends to dismiss them as part of a cost-cutting round, according to director Steen Frederiksen, who confirmed the plan to TV2 ØST.
“We would have preferred to avoid it, but to bring the budget into balance it has been necessary to reduce the number of employees by 11 positions,” he said. The dismissals affect both teachers and other staff at the school.
The reason is falling student enrollment at the institution, which is closely linked to the generally declining population on Lolland and Falster. Frederiksen said the region has seen a decline in recent years and that, looking ten years ahead, there could be around 20 percent fewer young people on Lolland Falster compared with today.
Savings have also been identified in other parts of the school’s operating budget beyond salaries. However, like other educational institutions, UCE’s funding is based on the number of students, and Frederiksen said the cuts could not be avoided.
“We try to do this as correctly and properly as possible,” he said. There is a consultation period during which the employees whose dismissal is proposed may submit objections.
UddannelsesCenter Sydøstdanmark currently employs about 325 people. The institution was formed last year when CELF and SOSU Nyløbing Falster merged.
It offers 26 vocational programs, 10th grade, three upper secondary programs, and a range of AMU and continuing education courses, with facilities in Nykøbing Falster as well as teaching in Vordingborg and Nakskov.
