Many will rally in Martin Place on Tuesday outside the Australian Financial Review’s Higher Education Summit.
The rally comes alongside the announcement that a NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into University Governance will be established.
The inquiry comes off the back of a petition begun by National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) and tabled by Labor MLC Sarah Kaine in NSW Parliament highlighting severe governance failures.
NSW university leaders have come under fire recently, with accusations of growing over-reliance on consulting firms, investigations launched by SafeWork NSW, severe financial mismanagement, overblown VC salaries, and suspension of course enrolments.
The NTEU is also currently in dispute with three separate NSW universities in the Fair Work Commission over failures to consult on major restructures and a lack of evidence behind decision making.
There’s a clear picture of a sector in crisis due to corporate greed and poor leadership. The summit’s key presenting partner, Nous, is a global consulting firm linked to job cuts across the higher education sector, most infamously at ANU.
Nous has a notorious track record in education in Australia.
The staff union, NTEU, did not receive an invitation to the summit and the speakers list is packed to the brim with VCs, advisors, industry lobbyists, and consulting firm representatives.
Meanwhile 1500 jobs are under threat across six NSW public universities: UTS, UOW, Macquarie, Charles Sturt, Western Sydney and Newcastle.
Quotes attributable to NTEU NSW Division Secretary Vince Caughley:
“We wholeheartedly welcome this inquiry as a testament to powerful voices of NTEU members and the strength of workers uniting to demand much better of university managements.
“While staff are losing jobs and students are losing courses, senior executives and consultants are meeting inside the summit to discuss the sector’s future without staff or student voices at the table.
“Cuts are not inevitable. They are choices about priorities. Universities must be run in the public interest with accountable governance and fair, secure jobs.
“University workers and the community are demanding greater scrutiny. VCs and consultants can’t be trusted to do the right thing, they’re being dragged out from the shadows to recommit to institutions that protect education and serve the public good.”
Contact details:
Shannan Ely NTEU NSW Division 0482 684 477 / [email protected]