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COVID just gives them the opportunity to move quickly and probably without any resistance .
The University of Newcastle building in Hunter Street , Newcastle . Photo : Peter Lorimer
COVID cost-cutting
Newcastle Uni staff declare ‘ no trust ’ in management amid course cuts .
By Wade Zaglas
University of Newcastle staff want more detail on plans to cut courses and amalgamate faculties .
In addition , an academic at the university has claimed “ there is no trust in university management ”, despite reassurances given by a university spokesperson that consultations and updates with staff would occur frequently .
The university finds itself in a perilous situation after announcing in May that the pandemic would take a heavy toll on its bottom line – to the tune of $ 58 million – leaving the institution with few choices but to make substantial cuts .
The leading idea to save the university involves consolidating five faculties into three . Staff would also be required to take an additional 10 days leave in 2021 to lower expenses , and an early retirement scheme would be rolled out for staff older than 55 .
The ABC was told vice-chancellor Alex Zelinsky needed $ 35 million in savings by December to ‘ balance the books ’, after months of staff enterprise agreement negations failed .
In order to achieve this , Zelinski conceded that jobs would have to be cut , met with an attendant reduction in the number of schools , subjects and degrees .
Since the original plan was outlined in May , little seems to have changed , except “ that at least 500 courses were under consideration to be cut or consolidated ”.
ABC Newcastle decided to interview four academics to gain a greater sense of staff morale and fear at the university . Words like “ poor ”, “ low morale ”, “ disappointing ” and “ difficult ” were commonly used to describe the overarching mood of the university .
In a remark that captures the situation aptly , an associate professor and decadeslong employee of the university referred to the current situation ominously as “ its lowest point ”.
“ The number of courses set to be cut is extraordinary ,” she told ABC Newcastle .
“ The process is as well – it ’ s just about money .
“ Each school was told , ‘ You ’ re allowed to spend a maximum of X amount of dollars per student ’ — regardless of what type of student – and that drove everything .”
The associate professor elaborated that courses not “ cutting the mustard – despite their importance ” – were being jettisoned , and also was unequivocal in criticism of “ very expensive degrees ”.
A senior lecturer also spoke ABC Newcastle , questioning whether the COVID-19 pandemic was the real reason for the change .
“ So , the university wants to make savings of $ 35 million a year going forward ,” he said . “ That ’ s got nothing to do with COVID . “ They wanted to make savings to the university even before COVID occurred — COVID just gives them the opportunity to move quickly and probably without any resistance .”
University of Newcastle staff also brought up “ a lack of community input ”, arguing decisions taken at the university would have an impact on one of NSW ’ s biggest regional employers .
Meanwhile , another academic was dubious about how “ the so-called course optimisation process would make anything better ”.
“ For the ones that remain , there ’ s going to be much less choice for students about what they do ,” he said .
“ It ’ s basically , ‘ What ’ s the smallest number of subjects we can give someone and still call it a degree ?’”
He added that suggestions the university could turn this financial year around into a surplus were “ galling ”.
ABC Newcastle sent a number of questions to the vice-chancellor ’ s office for a response , but none was provided .
In a statement , a university spokesperson said , “ the university will continue to consult with and update staff regularly throughout our course and faculty change processes ”. ■
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