BURST
More layoffs are set to hit Kwantlen Polytechnic University this week as declining enrolment continues to throw the school’s budget into disarray.
This time, the layoffs will hit unionized employees represented by the B.C. General Employees’ Union.
According to a staff memo sent Tuesday by acting president Diane Purvey, layoff notifications would go out starting Thursday, with meetings scheduled for the following week to discuss next steps.
It is unknown how many positions are affected though a source told Postmedia that the layoffs will be “across the board.”
The latest round of layoffs comes as the Metro Vancouver school continues to grapple with declining international enrolment that has contributed to a “sharp decline in revenue.”
In fiscal year 2026, KPU reported international student enrolment fell by nearly 4,500, compared to fiscal year 2024 when the federal government capped the number of student visas being issued.
“We expect a further reduction of almost 1,000 international students by fiscal year 2027 (FY27). By FY27 estimated international student revenue is set to be down by $88 million from the FY24 budget,” wrote Purvey in the memo.
“Domestic enrolment is expected to remain flat and is not sufficient to mitigate the international revenue decline.”
Last year, it was projected that the school faced a $49 million loss of revenue in fiscal 2026.
As a result, KPU made a number of cuts in administration, faculty and union positions, while also freezing overtime and discretionary spending. The move was made in hopes of achieving a $5 million reduction target for the 2025-2026 budget — the equivalent of 40 to 45 full-time positions.
The school also decided not to fill 20 vacant positions, another roughly $2.6 million in savings. Discretionary non-salary costs were also cut from the budget, saving $3.3 million. Temporary contracts that were not renewed also added another $4 million in savings.
“This is a challenging moment for KPU, and I am mindful of the real impact behind these decisions. Thank you for the care you continue to show our students and each other, even amid uncertainty,” Purvey wrote in her memo.
Meanwhile, the KPU community continues to ask questions about where newly hired president Bruce Choy has gone .
A note to teachers last month said Choy, who took over in September, had cancelled scheduled meetings and that his official installation as president had been postponed.
There had been “no formal communication regarding his multi-week absence or of any appointment of an acting president,” said Kwantlen Faculty Association president Mark Diotte.