The student occupation at Aberdeen University ended yesterday following a nine day protest in the building.
About a dozen protestors have been camped out in a corridor outside the principal’s office in Regent Walk since last Tuesday.
Students were backing a nationwide strike by members of the University and College Union (UCU), who feared they could lose up to £10,000 a year under new pension entitlement proposals.
After eight nights and nine days of eating, sleeping and studying in the cramped space, the students left what they dubbed the “corridor of power” yesterday.
A spokesman for the group said it had been “an incredibly stressful and difficult time for everyone involved,” adding it had been “far beyond even our worst expectations.”
During the occupation, the students claimed they were unable to shower or get access to fresh air apart from through one window.
Classmates also visited daily to “smuggle” them food and newspapers to keep them occupied during the sit-in.
On the second day of the protest, the university launched an investigation incident amid claims a senior member of staff allegedly “manhandled” several of the students.
A video of the incident involving estates and facilities director Angus Donaldson was posted online.
At the time, university rector Maggie Chapman said: “This might be acceptable in a rugby game, but it is certainly not an acceptable way to treat students.”
Last night a spokesman for students involved in the protest said: “We have been heartened by the solidarity across the country from different occupiers, students, and staff.
“Our campaign has reached hundreds of thousands of people on social media, and we secured a significant climb down from senior management on the docking of pay for action short of a strike – one of the most punitive measures our institution was putting on striking staff.
“The occupation may be over, but the movement is not.”
An Aberdeen University spokesman said: “The university can confirm the students have left.”
