King's, Huron trimming workforces due to financial pressure, but keep layoffs at bay

Both of Western University's affiliate university colleges are trimming their workforces while avoiding outright layoffs to offset losses brought on by a reduction of international students, all while trying to ensure no impacts on programming.

King's University College in London, Ont., is giving some employees early retirement offers, while Huron University College opts to leave some positions vacant, the presidents of both schools told CBC News, Tuesday.

Both institutions said a difficult balancing act is required to keep programs and staffing intact in a world where they can't rely on the higher tuition prices paid by international students, and the province won't allow them to increase the cost for domestic students.

"Like all universities, we're assessing our financial situation and addressing strategies and responses to a shifting enrolment situation," said Robert Ventresca, the interim president of King's. "We're making choices that are mindful of the financial reality, but also really obviously focused on our mission and our values."

That financial situation at Ontario's universities and colleges was made more challenging across the board by a cap on international student enrolment, put in place by Federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller in 2024, in an attempt to ease strain on the housing market.

Since then, several Ontario colleges, which typically have a much higher proportion of international enrolment than universities, have unveiled sweeping program cuts and layoffs aimed at salvaging balance books battered by a drop in international tuition, which is multiple times higher than domestic tuition.

While King's hasn't laid off staff, it has made moves to reduce the size of its workforce.

"We've offered early retirement," Ventresca said. "[They're] consistent with the agreements we have in place. Completely voluntary, and it's designed to help manage costs."

Ventresca stressed the voluntary nature of the early retirement offers and said they're not buyouts. He was unable to provide details on how many staff members were affected. 

"Those numbers are still outstanding and to be determined," Ventresca said.

The impact of the international student cap has been lower for King's compared to other institutions, he added, explaining that in a typical year, international students accounted for roughly 600 of the school's 3,500 student population. Moving forward, the expectation is "under 500, for sure," Ventresca said.

In terms of program reductions and class cancellations, Ventresca said "we're not going down that road at this time."

While he predicts a noticeable decline in international enrolment, he said there is a silver lining.

"While [post-secondary] enrolment overall is down, at King's it's up by about 4 per cent," Ventresca said.

Strong domestic enrolment keeps Huron cuts to a minimum

At Huron University College, the impact has also been mostly held at bay thanks to growth in domestic enrolment, according to Barry Craig, the school's president. 

The school has seen year-over-year domestic enrolment growth nearing 30 per cent for the past several years, which has helped offset a 50 per cent reduction in international students from pre-pandemic levels.

While the drop from roughly 165 international students to an expected 80 students next year has resulted in a tighter budget, Huron hasn't yet taken the path of layoffs, buyouts or program closures.

"We'd like to avoid that, if possible," Craig said.

There have, however, been positions that were left vacant following retirements or other departures, he added.

Despite different approaches to offsetting lost revenue, the presidents of both schools agree the cause of the financial uncertainty doesn't lie squarely at the feet of the international student cap. 

"We've had a freeze on tuition in the province now for seven years. We also had a 10 per cent mandated reduction in tuition by the province for all the universities," Craig said. "Another key part of our revenue, the government operating grant, has been frozen for years as well."

Both Ventresca and Craig said they're not particularly optimistic, given the current political climate, that the newly re-elected provincial government will make any significant moves to alleviate the pressure soon.

However, Ventresca said, he remains hopeful.

"I'm hoping that we can continue to advocate with governments and with the public on the value of higher education."