The University of Limerick has been criticised for its handling of staff issues and its use of severance payments in a new report on a series of controversies at the college in recent years.
The report carried out by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) and Department of Education. which runs to 122 pages, is strongly critical of UL’s HR practices, in particular its use of disciplinary procedures leading to findings of gross misconduct against a number of staff members.
The report states that the number of severance packages entered into by UL during the period under review was “several orders of magnitude greater than any other institution in the department’s jurisdiction”
While the university last year rejected calls for an independent review of allegations of misconduct, the college’s president, Dr Des Fitzgerald, quickly reversed this position when he took over as college president earlier this year.
UL’s governing authority – which has had as many as 40 members in the past – has also faced criticism for not properly holding the college to account.
Responding to the report education minister Richard Bruton said the review was “a positive step towards addressing the serious matters which have been raised in relation to the University of Limerick by a number of stakeholders.
