On 3 June, the university board approved cost-cutting measures totalling SEK 120 million over a three-year period. This decision is primarily a consequence of the government’s reduction in funding for first and second cycle education. Eva Pohl, Chair of Saco-S at Linnaeus University, does not currently know which employees will be affected.
She explains that the decision comes as no surprise. Since 2024, cost-cutting measures have been carried out in areas other than research and teaching. For example, the university’s IT department implemented operational changes that have led to redundancies. In 2025, a soft recruitment freeze was also introduced for administrative staff, and people who retired were not replaced. “We could already see back then which way things were heading,” she says.
A third of the university’s departments are currently undergoing operational changes, she continues. At present, she cannot say how many jobs will be lost. Other cost-cutting measures are also being implemented, such as reducing the number of assignments for deputy heads of department at one of the faculties.
“Negotiations are ongoing. But there is a danger of redundancies due to lack of work. And the managers who remain will simply have more to do.”
The operational changes are underway at the university’s sites in both Växjö and Kalmar. Pohl is already negotiating about matters relating to lack of work and redeployments. When the announcements are made depends entirely on how quickly the heads of each department can carry out their operational reviews, she says, adding that no single faculty will be impacted significantly more than others.
“There is no strategy to target any particular subject area,” she says. “The cuts will be spread evenly.”
Sven Carlsson, University Director at Linnaeus University, confirms that it is still unclear how many employees will be affected. He believes that the biggest cuts will be made in the university’s support functions. He emphasises that the impact of the cuts on teaching and research should be as small as possible. However, he cannot guarantee that teaching and research staff will be spared.
“At the same time,” he writes in an email, “it is important to state clearly that cuts of this magnitude will mean changes that impact the university in a number of ways.”
