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Unis downsize
Monash, UNSW to cut hundreds of jobs.
Monash University announced it will cut 277 jobs by the end
of the year shortly after UNSW revealed that it would slash
just under 500 full-time staff.
In a statement, Monash said it was projecting a $350m revenue
shortfall for 2020.
“Job losses are an unfortunate result of the COVID-19 global
health crisis across many industries,” the statement read.
“They will continue to be a reality without further government
support in particular for research.”
UNSW vice chancellor Ian Jacobs said the university would
cut 493 full-time equivalent jobs to address its financial position
beyond this year.
National Tertiary Education Union president Dr Alison Barnes
said the responsibility for the job cuts lay “squarely” with the federal
government.
“They have stubbornly refused to extend JobKeeper to Australian
universities and failed to provide anything close to an adequate
support package,” Barnes said.
UNSW has estimated a financial impact of $370 million
for 2021, including a $75 million loss after reducing “non-people
costs”.
“Despite continued engagement, the federal government chose
to exclude universities from the JobKeeper package,” a UNSW
spokeswoman said.
“While we welcome the government’s funding guarantee and
regulatory fee relief measures, more support is needed.
“We cannot continue to navigate this crisis without reducing the
size of our workforce.”
But in an opinion piece for The Conversation, two academics
said: “…it is by rejecting the notion only staff pay and conditions
are the flexible factors in the equation – and being prepared to
campaign against university administrations and governments on
this basis – that the sector can be improved for staff, students and
the public.”
The piece was penned by Alexis Vassiley, a PhD candidate at
Curtin University, along with Kaye Broadbent, who was a casual
academic at Central Queensland University until she lost her job in
a recent round of cuts.
They wrote: “By staff rejecting concessions on pay and
conditions, fighting for every job, and organising towards industrial
action in next year’s bargaining round, they can start to put
pressure on universities to treat them better, and the government to
increase funding.” ■
Changes ahead
Photo: AAP/Michael Frogley
CSU cuts or changes 116 course offerings.
In a shake-up of its course profile, Charles Sturt University will
slash 20 courses with no student enrolments and cut a further 28
with low numbers.
The university announced it would make changes to a further
61 offerings, and “revitalise” seven courses to make them more
attractive to prospective students.
CSU’s six Bachelor of Business degrees will be rolled into one
new Bachelor of Business degree with specialisations.
It will also consolidate the Communications, Theatre Media
and Creative Industries courses into a single, new course with
majors. The move surprised graduates and those working in
media alike, with one Reddit user saying: “When I was working in
production I was an outlier because I hadn’t done my uni course
at CSU.”
Acting vice-chancellor Professor John Germov said only
around 4 per cent of current students are enrolled in courses
approved for changes, whom the university expects to
retain through teaching out arrangements and equivalent
options.
“There are a small number of prospective students that have
enrolled in courses undergoing changes. These students will be
contacted to discuss an alternate enrolment plan that enables them
to reach their specific goals,” Germov said.
“Overall, these changes will strengthen our financial position,
meet the needs of our regional communities and deliver a better
experience for our students.”
In March, CSU projected a budget deficit for 2020 of
$49.5 million and expects the course changes to help it return to a
balanced budget by the end of 2021.
The National Tertiary Education Union assistant secretary
Damien Cahill told the ABC the university is going through what is
likely its most radical change in a decade.
“It’s going through a massive restructuring of its workforce where
you’re potentially going to see 200 people or more lose their jobs,”
Cahill said. ■
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