The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) has condemned the University of Newcastle’s decision to apply for Fair Work Commission intervention in enterprise bargaining.
The move comes as 140 job cuts loom over staff already experiencing severe stress and anxiety about their futures.
University management has applied for the Fair Work Commission to deal with a bargaining dispute, despite negotiations commencing just six months ago.
NTEU members are pushing for a fair pay rise, workload regulation and flexible work provisions.
NTEU members will strike for half a day on Thursday October 23.
The University of Newcastle attempted to sideline staff and their union from the bargaining process a little over two years ago.
UoN Vice-Chancellor Alex Zelinsky serves as Vice-President of the Australian Higher Education Industrial Association (AHEIA), the aggressive employer association known for advising universities on strategies to circumvent union negotiations.
NTEU General Secretary Damien Cahill said:
“The University of Newcastle has shown it would rather blow up negotiations and push disputes to the commission than engage constructively with staff seeking fair pay and conditions.
“Management is running to the Fair Work Commission rather than staying at the bargaining table and addressing the reasonable demands of staff for a fair pay rise, workload regulation and job security.
“This is a cynical tactic from a university whose vice-chancellor is the vice-president of the bosses’ association that is notorious for using aggressive industrial tactics.
“Staff are already under enormous pressure with 140 job cuts hanging over their heads. Now they must endure management’s aggressive industrial tactics designed to avoid genuine negotiation.
“The University of Newcastle appears to have lost faith in its own executives’ ability to negotiate a fair agreement. Instead of working with staff and the NTEU, they’re deploying the same failed playbook as they did last time.
“Universities that find common ground with the NTEU reach agreements that benefit everyone. But the University of Newcastle seems determined to pursue confrontation.
“The NTEU will continue to fight for fair pay, secure jobs and reasonable working conditions for all university staff.”
Media contacts:
Matt Coughlan 0400 561 480 / matt@hortonadvisory.com.au
NTEU members at University of Newcastle on strike at NUspace, Newcastle. September 24, 2022 (Credit: Al Scott, NTEU NSW)
