Zoom Summary – June 2020 (PDF version)
Dear Professional Staff,
Thank you to those that attended our Zoom meeting last week to discuss the announcements made by the Vice Chancellor with respect to the upcoming wage increases and large scale university restructuring.
As we stated clearly in the meeting, we are firmly opposed to the proposal to cancel wage increases without any consultation with your elected staff representatives and unions and we will vigorously campaign for the university to explore alternative cost-saving measures.
The university had scheduled a meeting with union representatives last week. However, that was cancelled due to the extraordinary University Council meeting. Fortunately, our CPSU NSW Branch President, Toni Ledgerwood, was invited by the Chancellor to attend the meeting as a trusted observer and was given the opportunity to address Council on the issue of the wage increase cancellations.
Following the Council meeting we met with the Vice Chancellor and other management representatives. In this meeting we spoke of our desire to work collaboratively with the university to develop a response which supports our ongoing success without implementing measures which would have a punitive effect on staff.
We voiced our concern about fear-mongering and our dissatisfaction with the disregard we felt had been shown to staff in the context of how the recent announcements were made. We made it clear that staff needed to be heard.
During the meeting we proposed a series of measures which we believe may have a more comprehensive impact on the university’s bottom line than wage cuts. We pushed hard for the university to explore the $750 million NSW Government Loan Scheme announced on the weekend.
In addition to non-labour related measures, we suggested the university consider cost-saving measures such as voluntary fractional appointments, initiatives to reduce leave liabilities, a banked annual leave scheme and the possible deferral of next year’s wage increase.
We also demanded that the Planning Ahead Committee include union representation to ensure that members have an active voice in decisions that will affect workforce restructuring and change management.
The university has now written to us to advise that it has considered these options and at this point, still intends on pursuing the wage increase cancellations and a program of forced redundancies.
We will oppose the university’s preferred options which, if adopted, would result in a protract wage freeze and heavy job losses. It is a blunt instrument when we need surgical precision, collaboration and basic human decency.
There is a better way.
Yours in Union,
Shelley Odewahn & Toni Ledgerwood
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