Universities seek to end poaching of staff

THE heads of the country’s universities are to come together next month to try and reach an agreement to prevent them poaching key staff from each other.

While the practice is not exclusive to a particular institution, University College Dublin (UCD) has been singled out for its tactics in luring major staff with significant research income potential from other universities.

The matter has been the subject of discussion among the university heads through the Irish Universities Association (IUA), which was asked by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) earlier this year to agree practices for promoting collaboration. A key part of a draft protocol drawn up over the summer was a set of transparent procedures for advertising key positions and making appointments, particularly in research fields, and ensuring they don’t undermine the research strengths of fellow universities.