A STRIKE scheduled at Queen Margaret University (QMU) at Musselburgh this week was called off after settlement was reached on jobs and future working.

Agreement between the University and College Union and QMU will ensure there will be no compulsory redundancies and no plans for further staff cuts.

They are committed to work together on a number of other workplace issues.

A joint statement also addresses how workloads will be managed and notes the trade union voice as being "valued and integral to the university".

Oonagh O’Brien, the university's UCU spokesperson, said: "This has been a difficult time and staff have been deeply worried about their jobs and frustrated at the way changes have been made.

"This agreement means there will be no compulsory redundancies and ensures that changes due to reduced staff will be managed.

"It also allows us to move forward and work together to improve our workplace policies for the future."

A spokesperson from Queen Margaret University said: "QMU management and UCU have reached an agreement to resolve the trade dispute between UCU and QMU.

"Strike action and action short of a strike have been called off with immediate effect.

"Both parties are pleased to have reached an agreement and are fully committed to rebuilding positive collective bargaining."

A series of strikes, including one on Wednesday, were planned over job losses at the university after union bosses said talks had "ended without a satisfactory resolution".

UCU members previously said they were angry at the loss of about 35 jobs, which represented a loss of seven per cent of the university’s total workforce.

In a recent strike ballot, two-thirds of UCU members (64 per cent) who voted had backed strike action on a turnout of 72 per cent.