STUDENTS, UNIVERSITIES AND THE COMMUNITY THE BIG LOSERS FROM VSU DEAL
December 9, 2005
Thousands of jobs, the educational experience of students, the quality of our universities and their ability to compete in the international higher education market are the big losers from today’s last minute deal to pass the Federal Government’s so-called Voluntary Student Unionism (VSU) legislation, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) said on Friday.
“The passage of the Federal Government’s Higher Education Support Amendment (Abolition of Compulsory Up-Front Student Union Fees) Bill 2005 marks an international first for Australia,” said Andrew Nette, NTEU Policy and Research Coordinator.
“To the Union’s knowledge we are now the only OECD country that prohibits the collection of non-academic fees to support extra curricular campus activities.”
“In fact virtually every university worth its name in the Commonwealth, United States and Western Europe provides for a collection of a fee for such purposes.”
“The Government has rushed through this legislation on the last parliamentary sitting day of the year for the sake of fulfilling an ideological obsession that has nothing to do with the welfare of students.”
“The Union is very disappointed by the actions of Family First Senator, Steven Fielding, whose last minute deal with an increasingly desperate Government allowed the legislation to pass.”
“Why Senator Fielding felt that he had to agree to the Government’s VSU legislation now is a complete mystery, but his stance casts major doubts on his party’s much vaunted commitment to families and their well being.”
“An estimated 4000 plus jobs Australia wide will be lost as a result of the legislation, a figure that does not include potential job losses from the broader flow on impacts, particularly in regional areas.”
“Services such as childcare, personal, housing and financial counselling and assistance, careers and employment services as well as academic advocacy and advice are essential to the capacity of many students to continue their studies, whether this be in metropolitan or regional areas.
“It is these services that help facilitate students’ capacity to attend university, and the skilled student organisation staff that administer them, that are the least likely to survive under a user pays system that will ensue with the passage of this legislation.”
Information and Comment:
Andrew Nette, NTEU Policy and Research Coordinator: 0438 026277
Emma Cull, NTEU Policy and Research Officer: 0417 660112