VICTORIA UNIVERSITY BRANCH
NOT HAPPY LIZ!
NTEU members vote to take industrial disputes with VU management over redundancies
The meeting of NTEU Members on 6 November voted unanimously "That this meeting endorses the Union’s recommendation to pursue disputes over section 65 ‘Organisational Change’ of the current Enterprise Agreement. We shall take up these disputes ourselves, and we call on our colleagues also to take up these disputes."
The VU Branch of NTEU has set up a website where members can notify an industrial dispute under clause 63 of the Victoria University (Academic & General Staff) Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2005 [the "Agreement"]
All members of staff are encouraged to use the facility to notify their concern at the failure of the University to properly consult about organisational change as required by the Agreement
The website can be found at: http://universitybargaining.com.au/vu-dispute/
- NTEU Members' Meeting 6 November 2008
- Motions from community meeting on 6 November in support of VU staff
- MEMBERS VOTE TO SACK THE VICE-CHANCELLOR!
- ABOUT US
- Collective Bargaining at VU
- VU Charges for Car Parking in 2009 - Not happy Liz!
- OUR UNIVERSITIES MATTER
- 2008 Branch Newsletters
- 2007 Branch Newsletters
- CONNECT - the publication for sessional academic staff
- Enterprise Agreement
- Audited Financial Reports
NTEU Members' Meeting 6 November 2008
Members attending the meeting at Footscray Park on 6 November 2008 passed the following motions unanimously;
Motion 1
That this meeting notes with anger and dismay:
1) the University management’s determination to see through the largest redundancy program in Australian university history.
2) that the redundancies, combined with course cutbacks, campus closures, car-parking changes, and management’s failure to enter seriously into a Collective Bargaining Agreement with its staff, have done great harm to the University’s reputation. They will do even greater harm to its reputation in the months to come.
3) for the University management’s failure to manage the University’s resources in a way that could avoid this scale of trauma. Senior management should be held accountable. We note that no senior managers will take a pay-cut, much less a job-cut, for their ineptitude. What is more, we remain profoundly skeptical about management’s motives in launching this program of redundancies.
Motion 2
That this meeting reaffirms the five motions passed unanimously by 350 VU staff at a meeting on 21 October 2008. In particular, we reaffirm our commitment to taking industrial action in pursuit of a Collective Agreement that would protect VU staff against such mistreatment by management in the future, should that be necessary.
Motion 3
That this meeting endorses the Union’s recommendation to pursue disputes over section 65 ‘Organisational Change’ of the current Enterprise Agreement. We shall take up these disputes ourselves, and we call on our colleagues also to take up these disputes.
Motion 4
That this meeting endorses the Union’s community campaign of engaging local politicians, media, and others with the scale of management failure of this crucial community asset for Melbourne’s greater western region.
Motions from community meeting on 6 November in support of VU staff
A well attended community meeting in Footscray heard from members of staff and students at Victoria University, and from Labor and Greens members of Parliament, on the concocted crisis at Victoria University and passed the following motions:
1. That this meeting calls on Victoria University to:
Immediately stop its plans to cut 20% of education courses and sack
270 staff which will have a negative effect on higher education,
the western region community and students who attend Victoria
University.
Halt campus closures until affected communities have had adequate
time to review these decisions and have real input into the
decisions which will have an impact on tertiary education in their
area.
Consider a wider range of sustainable alternatives to the present
course of action that trades buildings for core education services
and jobs.
2. That this meeting further calls on the Federal Government to
provide improved funding to strengthen education services at
Victoria University and repeal John Howard’s workchoices
legislation.
3. That this meeting authorises the formation a Friends of Victoria
University to lobby, support and take action to defend Victoria
University as a valuable community asset for the west and the
region.
4. That this meeting calls on Elizabeth Harman Vice Chancellor of
Victoria University to resign immediately.
MEMBERS VOTE TO SACK THE VICE-CHANCELLOR!
A large meeting at Footscray Park on Tuesday 21 October 2008 voted to take industrial action and inter alia demanded that Council sack the Vice-Chancellor over her secretive plans to sack more than 250 staff in the interests of her grand plan for building, not the quality of teaching at VU, but just building buildings.
The Motions were introduced as follows:
At the end of May the Chair of the Resources Committee of Council noted that the University’s finances were in a sound position. Now, in October we are faced with a purported crisis (a concocted crisis?) which apparently requires the University to sack one in four of the academic staff of the University and about 100 general staff let alone the TAFE staff.
We have got to this point because of a desire to fund a series of building projects which are in fact not even yet approved by Council. We are told that $28.5 million in expenditure has to come out of the budget to pay for these projects.
We are also told that units and courses with small numbers must be closed, but the University cannot tell us what that will save. The faculties have been doing this for some time and this work will bear fruit over the next two years. But this will apparently not yield the numbers needed to fund the grand building plan of the VC.
So, viable courses, with reasonable numbers, are likely to be chopped to reach the completely arbitrary $28.5 million figure. This will tear the heart out of this University and what it purports to offer to the students and the communities of the West.
The following motions reflect the concerns that staff at this University have for the leadership of the University and the directions that they are taking it...
Motion 1:
This meeting notes that Victoria University was provided with an NTEU log of claims in May 2008, and has failed to negotiate genuinely with staff over key elements of:
• Job security, “managing change,” and staff workloads.
• Restoration of working conditions that were lost due to the now-defunct HEWRRs funding conditions imposed by the previous federal government.
• A competitive rise in wages and salaries.
Further, this meeting calls on the University to negotiate a new Collective Agreement immediately – these negotiations to conclude during 2008 – which addresses the same three crucial issues to the satisfaction of its staff.
Thirdly, this meeting of staff calls on the NTEU to prosecute the University in court for its breaches of the extant Enterprise Bargaining Agreement, especially its disregard for the processes around “managing change” and staff workloads.
Motion 2:
This meeting notes the failure of the Vice-Chancellor to report the financial circumstances of the University transparently, including to University Council, and calls for an independent external review of the finances and use of resources in Victoria University.
Motion 3:
This meeting calls on the Victoria University Council to terminate the services of the Vice-Chancellor for mismanagement of a public asset of vital importance to the Western region of Melbourne and for misleading the Council of the University in the process.
Motion 4:
This meeting authorises the NTEU to begin a public campaign to stop the Vice-Chancellor destroying an important community asset and to include:
• Public meetings throughout the western region to discuss the huge impact of the Vice-Chancellor’s cuts on the community, and their impact on education offerings and viability of campuses.
• A protest at the forthcoming University Graduations.
• A protest at coming meetings and other functions of Council.
Motion 5:
Noting the clear connection between the Job Security claims of the NTEU in the current round of collective bargaining (served on the University in May 2008) and the current job security issues arising from the actions of the Vice-Chancellor in declaring redundancies to build a physical, but not an intellectual, vision of the University this meeting calls on the NTEU to implement industrial action in support of job security at VU in the following forms:
1. Bans on the following activities:
• transmission or recording of assessment results;
• administration of, or training in, VU's CAMS course management system;
• using the SPDP system for staff performance management;
• participation in University awards (including faculty awards for teaching and the like);
• contributing to VU's Higher Education Research Data Collection processes;
• administration of, or training in, VU's student evaluation systems (SES, SEU, and SET);
• acknowledging or responding to communications from the Vice-Chancellor and other senior Executives;
• participation in “Making VU” implementation;
• participation in the VU "Clusters" framework;
• implementation of any new “Learning in the Workplace” initiatives;
• undertaking any increase in teaching hours allocation;
• participation in academic workload allocation for 2009;
• the use of private transport for inter-campus travel;
• work outside of normal hours of work;
• any use of BIG BLUE FONT in University correspondence.
and
• Overtime bans.
• Strike action
ABOUT US
Office Location:
32 Federal Street, (corner of Tiernan and Federal
Streets - enter via carpark in Tiernan Street)
Footscray Park Campus, Telephone: 9919 4076, Fax: 9919 4019, email:
vu@nteu.org.au
Postal address:
National Tertiary Education Union
Victoria University Branch
Footscray Park Campus
c/- Victoria University
PO Box 14428
Melbourne 8001
Branch Officers
President: Richard Gough, telephone 9919 4640
Vice-President Academic: Susan Bevan, telephone 9919 2566
Vice-President General Staff: Michael Zaar, telephone 9919 5233
Secretary: Tom Clark, telephone 9919 2196
Branch Staff
Branch Organiser: Steve Horton, telephone 9919 4076, vu@nteu.org.au
Industrial Organiser: Russel Baader, telephone 9919 4076, rbaader@vic.nteu.org.au
| Branch Committee |
Collective Bargaining at VU
At the meeting of members on 21 October there
was unanimous support for a motion supporting industrial action
with regard to our enterprise bargaining claim on job security. To
take industrial action legally (so called protected action), we
needed to step through an obstacle course created by the Howard
Government under Work Choices. The aim of Work Choices was to
undermine the capacity of unions to take industrial action.
The first step in the obstacle course was to appear before the
Australian Industrial Relations Commission to get an order
authorising a ballot of members endorsing the action, even though
350 of you had voted in favour of it already.
True to form the Howard government gave employers the right to contest authorisation of such ballots. VU management as usual has followed the Work Choices line to thwart the expressed will of the members meeting. They have succeeded for the moment in having the ballot order turned down on a legal technicality, thus stopping your right to have a democratic vote on the issue. We are obtaining legal advice on immediately lodging an appeal on the decision and/or making a further application for a ballot.
Be assured that these processes will only to a temporary delay in our getting the right to have the secret ballot, followed by industrial action.
Obviously in dealing with a management wedded to a Work Choices philosophy we need to respond with every means we can.
So we intend to lodge a dispute in the Australian Industrial Relations Commission around the failure of the VU management to engage in real consultation about job redundancies as required by the Managing Change provisions of our agreement. In doing this we intend to get them to follow proper procedures and open discussion about the problems facing VU and options other than forced redundancies.
In line with Motion Four passed at our members meeting on 21 October we will also be prosecuting the University in the courts for breach of the Managing Change provisions of our agreement.
If, as anticipated, the VC unilaterally makes major changes to our workload model we will be notifying a dispute about this and also pursuing the issue in the Federal Magistrates Court.
We will be holding a meeting of members at 1pm next Thursday 6 November to report on the issues and to present motions on further action.
For more updates check www.universitybargaining.com.au/vu/
Regards
Richard Gough
President
NTEU Victoria University Branch
THE NTEU TEAM
The NTEU bargaining team consists of the
following VU staff: Richard Gough, Tom Clark, Paul Adams, Sue
Thurston, and Emily Wark.
The Branch has also set up reference groups to enable the
bargaining team to both provide and get feedback and advice from
specific constituencies as bargaining unfolds. If you would like to
take an active role in this bargaining round, or find out more
about the claim and the bargaining process, contact any of the
bargaining team members directly or the Branch (on extension 4076,
or at vu@nteu.org.au).
VU Charges for Car Parking in 2009 - Not happy Liz!
Like most staff, the NTEU is opposed to these new car parking
charges. NTEU members have been lobbying the University to get a
fairer outcome, but VU management has not been listening so
far.
In fact, it’s worse than just not listening: VU management has been
claiming that we, the staff, accept these new charges. That is
what the VC has been telling members of the University
Council. And that is simply not true.
Staff and students are understandably furious about these charges.
So now it is time to make sure the management, and Council, hear
directly from us.
This link http://universitybargaining.com.au/vu/
takes you through to an NTEU sponsored website, where you can
quickly and simply send a message to the Vice-Chancellor, telling
her the new car-parking charges are unfair. This link is open to
members, non-members and students — feel free to forward it to
anyone you know at VU who cares about parking at VU.
Please support your colleagues by clicking on the link and sending
a message (It should take you less than a minute.)
There is also an online petition at the same website. Please sign
it, and encourage your colleagues and students to sign it
too.
Take a stand — this is a $300 pay cut for staff, and a $300 fee-hike for students!
We call on VU to:
• Charge no fees for parking before capital works have been carried out
• Discuss alternative revenue options for the improvements to campus parking with students and staff
• Develop sustainable plans for inter-campus shuttle services and strategic lobbying of government for improved public transport in the West.
OUR UNIVERSITIES MATTER
NTEU campaigns for a better higher education system
NTEU is campaigning during 2008 to reinvigorate Australia’s universities under the banner of
"Our Universities Matter – Investing in People & Society"
As a part of the campaign for a better higher education system the NTEU is conducting an online National Petition and Statement on Academic Freedom and University Independence.
National Petition
Australia’s universities have the common responsibility of delivering world class scholarship, teaching, research, research training and community service. Each university has a unique mission which aims to meet the needs of the communities it serves. For more than a decade, however, Australia’s universities have experienced significant under-investment and de-stabilisation while still being expected to continue to fulfill their responsibilities.
The Petition calls upon the Federal Government to:
• Improve Commonwealth funding to reflect the real costs of delivering internationally competitive research and education, as well as allowing each institution to follow its own particular mission
• Make access to higher education more equitable and affordable and improve student services at our universities
• Provide legislative protection for the distinctive characteristics of our universities, especially academic freedom and institutional autonomy.
Sign the Petition at: www.nteu.org.au/campaigns/ouruniversitiesmatter/petition
Statement on Academic Freedom and University Independence
Freedom of speech is one of the foundations of a democratic society. Intellectual freedom is exercised by public broadcasters, non-government organisations, independent think tanks, government research agencies, and news agencies.
In the context of universities, academic freedom is a right and responsibility of all staff and students and underpins the creation and dissemination of new knowledge. Academic freedom is central to the mission of each university and must not be undermined by commercial activities or government interference.
Unlike in many other countries, academic freedom in Australian universities is not protected by legislation.
The Statement on Academic Freedom and University Independence calls on the Rudd Government to provide legislative protection for academic freedom and institutional autonomy and support words similar to those contained in Ireland’s Universities Act 1997:
“A member of the academic staff of a university shall have the freedom, within the law, in his or her teaching, research and any other activities either in or outside the university, to question and test received wisdom, to put forward new ideas and to state controversial or unpopular opinions and shall not be disadvantaged, or subject to less favourable treatment by the university, for the exercise of that freedom.
[A university] be entitled to regulate its affairs in accordance with its independent ethos and traditions and the traditional principles of academic freedom, and in doing so it shall have regard to:
(i) the promotion and preservation of equality of opportunity and access,
(ii) the effective and efficient use of resources, and
(iii) its obligations as to public accountability.”
Sign the Statement online at: www.nteu.org.au/campaigns/ouruniversitiesmatter/academic_freedom
2008 Branch Newsletters
| Branch News No 5, October 2008 | Job Security Dispute: Victoria University Matters – but apparently not to the VC |
| Branch News No 4, 30 September 2008 | COLLECTIVE BARGAINING UPDATE |
| Branch News No 3, 9 September 2008 | Charges for Carparking; Collective Bargaining UpDate; Our Universities Matter!; Business and Law Tutorials; Workers’ Compensation review threatens workplace stress claims |
| Branch News No 2, 5 June 2008 | Collective Bargaining Commences at VU!; The 'UNMAKING' of Equity & Social Justice; Who Gives A Toss About General Staff at VU?; Elections for VU Branch Executive; DESPATCHES; A 4% Payrise! |
| Branch News No 1, 4 February 2008 | From the President; We Have Moved!; Despatches - messages from the frontline: The Unmaking of VU; Academic Leave Deeming; A 2% payrise and 4% yet to come! |
2007 Branch Newsletters
| Branch News No 14, 7 November 2007 | Staff Overworked and Stressed Out by Workloads Model; 24 December: A Holiday!; Member meetings express concern at Workforce Productivity Programme Grant Proposals; Council/ERB Elections; Academic Freedom Under Attack? |
| Branch News No 12, 6 September 2007 | Help to change the academic workloads model; Whitten Oval Plan - Out of bounds on the full?; Thinking about an AWA?; Council/ERB Elections; Open-Plan offices - a non-reply from the Vice-Chancellor? |
| Branch News No 11, 24 July 2007 | Open Letter to VC; SPDP?; DVC Hickman's Reply to member concerns; 2006-2007 Tax Statements;Fixed Term Contract Conversion |
| Bulletin No 10, 19 June 2007 | Sessional Academic Staff marking; University Plans for Open-Plan; A Reply To DVC Hickman; General Staff Re-Classification |
| Bulletin No 9, 12 June 2007 | Facilities Change Plan; Emergency Procedures at VU; Making VUThink |
| Bulletin No 8, 16 May 2007 | VU - Employer of Choice? |
| Bulletin No 7, 19 April 2007 | VC Reinstates Retrenched Academics After Accepting Review Committee Ruling |
| Bulletin No 6, 3 April 2007 | Voice-It? Why can't senior management cut the spin and just report the facts? |
| Bulletin No 5, 21 March 2007 | Soup Can OR Can Can – the Staff Survey Revealed |
| Bulletin No 4, 8 March 2007 | The Inescapable Truths: Mistaking Management for Governance |
| Bulletin No 3, 20 February 2007 | NTEU Takes VU to Federal Court |
| Bulletin No 2, 14 February 2007 | HALF TRUTHS, MEAN SPIRITEDNESS, AND MORE REDUNDANCIES: AN OLD FORMULA IN A NEW SCHOOL OF THOUGHT |
| Bulletin No 1, 15 January, 2007 | Treating People Equally Well – An Old School of Thought |
CONNECT - the publication for sessional academic staff
| Connect Issue 1, 2008 | |
| CONNECT Issue 2, July 2007 | |
| CONNECT Issue 1, 2007 |
Enterprise Agreement
Victoria University (Academic & General Staff) Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2005
| Enterprise Bargaining Agreement |
Audited Financial Reports
The audited financial reports for the VU Branch of the NTEU can be found here. These reports are for the financial years 2003-2004, 2004-2005, 2005-2006 and 2006-2007. They are available as a PDF file from this web link.
Signed copies can be viewed at the Branch Office, 32 Federal Street, (corner of Tiernan and Federal Streets) Footscray Park Campus
| Audited Financial Reports FY 2006-2007 | The audited financial reports for the VU Branch for the financial year 2006-2007 |
| Audited Financial Reports FY 2005-2006 | The audited financial reports for the VU Branch for the financial year 2005-2006 |
| Audited Financial Reports FY 2004-2005 | The audited financial reports for the VU Branch for the financial year 2004-2005 |
| Audited Financial Reports FY 2003-2004 | The audited financial reports for the VU Branch for the financial year 2003-2004 |