STAFF at Southampton University have not been paid this month.

Workers at the institution checked their accounts to find money hadn’t gone in.

It comes just months after lecturers took to the picket line in a row over pensions – meaning that hundreds of them already had pay docked last month.

Speaking to the Daily Echo one member of staff said it was “scary.”

They said: “We were supposed to have been paid today.

“They haven’t emailed us, they just put something up on the website.

“It’s just not good enough. It’s very scary. I’ve got rent to pay and bills coming out tomorrow.

“It’s not in any way reassuring to know that our employers can’t pay us on time.

“The pay slips have been up since last week so they know how much was supposed to come out.”

A statement issued on the university’s website said: “The university is aware there appears to have been a problem with processing this month’s salary payments to staff.

"This is being investigated very urgently with our bank. We are very sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, and we will provide further information during the day as soon as we know more.”

It comes just days after the university was ranked as 15th in the UK and 126th in the world in the Times Higher Education survey.

A university spokesman told the Daily Echo that the situation is "completely unrelated to pensions".

A spokesman for the University and College Union said: "It is important that staff are told what is happening and when they can be expected to be paid.

"The university needs to guarantee that staff will not be left out of pocket because of this error."