Unfortunately Victoria University management are still refusing to pay staff a wage rise in 2010, despite the fact that staff of every other Victorian University have already or will shortly receive a pay rise this year.  The Union has made it clear to management that the only thing they need to do in order to bring the results ban to an end is to agree to a pay rise comparable to other university staff.  While we are waiting for management to see sense, the bans on transmission of results are still in place.  More information about why the Union is imposing bans is available here: http://universitybargaining.com.au/students/vu-results-ban/student-flyer/

Applying for an exemption

We regret that this is causing inconvenience to some students.  To reduce that inconvenience, the NTEU has exempted from the ban all results which are necessary for:

Graduation
Employment
Supplementary Exams
Visa requirements

If you believe your results fall into that category, or if there is another reason you would suffer particular hardship as a result of the delay in receiving your results, please lodge an application for exemption at http://universitybargaining.com.au/students/vu-results-ban/

If you have already applied

Applications are generally dealt with within three days of being lodged, and applicants are informed by email.  Whenever an exemption is granted, the relevant member of academic staff is informed immediately, and they will communicate the exempted results to the University, who will then put the process in train to release those results.

On 7 May Fair Work Australia approved our application for a ballot of NTEU members at VU to approve industrial action in support of Enterprise Bargaining negotiations.

Ballot papers will be posted by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to your home address on Wed 19 May, which means they should reach you by Fri 21 May at the latest.

If your ballot paper doesn’t reach you by then, you will need to contact the AEC directly as the Branch office has no control or authority over the ballot process once the ballot begins.

The questions to be put to you in the ballot are:

Do you, for the purpose of advancing claims in the negotiation of an Enterprise Agreement with Victoria University, authorise industrial action in the form of:

1. Four (4) hour stoppages of work, taken either separately or consecutively?
2. Twenty-four (24) hour stoppages of work, taken either separately or consecutively?
3. Bans on the recording, or transmission to Victoria University, of student assessment and exam results?

I would urge you to vote in favour of all 3 forms of industrial action in order to maximise our leverage should we need to take industrial action to further our claims during bargaining.

The Ballot will be close on Mon 31 May at 10:00am. This means that only ballot papers the AEC has received by that time will be included in the ballot.

Please post your ballot back to the AEC in the postage-paid envelope that will be provided with your ballot papers (do NOT send them via VU internal mail to the Branch office).

The Victorian College of the Arts and Music Review released today confirms the concerns expressed by the National Tertiary Education Union, said Matthew McGowan, Secretary of the NTEU Victorian Division today.

“We have been saying for years that without additional government funding, the Victorian College of the Arts and Music will continue to suffer. The University of Melbourne review released today confirms that the future of high quality specialist teaching at the VCA will continue to be under threat,” Mr McGowan said.

“The review agrees with union concerns about the nature of many of the courses and structure of schools, including Music Theatre and Puppetry. University management and in particular VCAM Dean Sharman Pretty were premature in cancelling these important courses,” he said.

“We further welcome the recommendation that the Melbourne Model introduction be postponed until a full review of the curriculum is undertaken.”

The NTEU submission to the VCAM review recommended that the State and Federal Governments commit to increased funding for the VCAM.

“Without these additional funds, there is no prospect that the VCAM will be able to continue to offer high quality, intensive training to Australia’s most talented artists. The University has demonstrated that it is not willing to support this kind of education,” said Mr McGowan.

“With the Federal and State Budgets not delivering for this important arts institution in Victoria, it is inevitable that the VCAM will die from death by a thousand cuts unless something is done soon,” he said.

The NTEU will be holding meetings of its members in the Faculty of the VCA and Music next week to discuss the review.

For further information contact:

Matthew McGowan, Secretary, NTEU Victorian Division

Phone: 9254 1930