The crisis isn’t over – nor is the fight

Kieran McCarron, Policy & Research Officer

Since March 2020 the NTEU has been closely tracking the impacts of border closures and the Federal Government’s funding cuts on the sector.

In June and July last year we saw the first wave of job losses, with a second bigger wave hitting the sector early this year. To date our Branches have been able to record a staggering minimum of 16,550 jobs lost across public universities during these two rounds.

Unfortunately, the crisis is not over, and the NTEU has been able to identify a distinct third wave of job losses that university managements have planned...

Unfortunately, the crisis is not over, and the NTEU has been able to identify a distinct third wave of job losses that university managements have planned for Q3 and Q4 at nine universities including: Adelaide, Melbourne, Macquarie, Newcastle, La Trobe, Monash, RMIT, UWA, ANU. These upcoming job losses will affect at least 1,666 staff.

NO TRANSPARENCY

We refer to this figure as a minimum because:

• In some cases, universities reported full time equivalents lost not actual jobs.

• Almost no university has reported casual and fixed term job losses in instances where they were not compelled to.

• The quality of publicly available data on casual employment in universities is generally poor due to the usage of FTEs or is significantly delayed.

As it stands, the lack of transparency in university workforce data allows managements to mask heavy casualisation and increases the risk that universities will attempt to re-fill allegedly 'redundant positions' with even more casual and fixed term staff than before – after all, we know that just because colleagues were made redundant does not mean that the actual work is no longer required.

The NTEU will continue advocating its long-held position that there needs to be full transparency in university workforce data – including in the usage of casual and fixed term staff – so we can call out managements that take this approach.

THIS FIGHT’S NOT OVER

Our National Week of Action, from September 13-17, will be five days of action by NTEU members coming together to fight against over-zealous job and course cuts coming too hard and too soon from managements and an indifferent and reticent government. Visit our website in early September to find out what your Branch has organised for the National Week of Action and get involved!