Despite Tim Sprague having been unavailable due to sickness, the second bargaining meeting proceeded for the year on Tuesday this week.

Progress was made on:

Managing change

It’s looking like agreement might be possible on a Managing Change clause that both management and the Unions can agree to, which mainly includes the right of Unions to be properly consulted on any impending change proposals, prior to a decision being reached. Our claim will also strengthen the right od staff to be provided with proper access about change proposals in order to make informed decisions in response to any proposal. 

Position Classification

The NTEU is primarily seeking to strengthen the appeals process for General Staff Position reclassification claims by way of an appeals committee comprised of some Union nominees.  Despite the management team stating problems it has with the make up of an appeals committee, we are getting very close to securing a stronger process for appeals.

MUCC (Consultative Committee)

The crux of the NTEU’s claim on this proposed committee is that the function of any such committee be not just to discuss workplace issues faced by staff at MQ, but to discuss issues with the intent of progressing solutions for the issues.  The NTEU’s position is that Union officials should be present with full rights.  Both Unions have put forward the position that the Chair of the Committee should be elected.

General staff career development

This clause is now agreed and settled. 

 Union representation

Negotiations continue on claims around Union representation, aimed at winning back much of the Union’s former rights around office space, time release for elected officials, access to staff inductions, payroll deductions cemented in the collective agreement, and more.

 The next bargaining meeting will be on March 11 to focus purely on Academic Workloads, with a view to expediting this claim.  We are waiting for confirmation on a further full-day bargaining meeting on March 18.

Bargaining resumed for 2010 on Tuesday 9 Feb 2010 and the Management team continued their show of non-responsiveness and disinterest to the NTEU’s claims.

Contract Research Staff
Having put on the table a thoughtful and progressive claim for Contract Research Staff, it beggars belief that the Management team could flatly refuse to engage around the issues, despite the fact that this category of staff continue to put up with unacceptable levels of job insecurity and lack of entitlements.

The crux of the Union’s claim is that the University organise contracts for Research Only staff in such a way that would harness the excellent skills and experience of these staff in between projects instead of leaving them hung out to dry when funding runs out. We simply do not accept that a large proportion of the workforce should be in insecure forms of employment. NTEU also wants to see some form of severance pay to compensate for the University’s inability to provide further employment.

Management have simply not put any real thought into how they could better provide employment security for Research Only staff, despite purporting to be an “aspiring research University”. Such aspirations will never be reached by treating research only staff as second class.

ACTION OPPORTUNITY!

The NTEU has drafted an excellent and carefully considered claim for research only staff and we want to make sure all research only staff have seen it. If you are working as this category of staff at Macquarie in one of the Research centres (or elsewhere) and would be happy to help book a morning tea, an NTEU representative will gladly come to your tea room and talk about the claim. We just need you to organise the date and invite your colleagues along.

If you are interested or have any questions about what’s involved, please call Cat Coghlan in the branch office on 9850 7643, or email: nteu@mq.edu.au

Academic Workloads
Not only was Management not ready to discuss Academic Workloads on Tuesday, it wasn’t until the NTEU bargaining team said that it would be reporting back to members at the General Meeting the next day that they were able to suggest some dates to start discussing this important claim. They have come back with an initial date of March 11 – weeks into first semester when Academic staff will already be up to their eyeballs in excessive workload. Academic staff are working under unacceptable strain as student enrolments continue to rise and casualisation is out of control. Something has to change; NTEU members cannot be expected to continue saying ‘yes’ to workload when Management keep saying ‘no’ to resources.

ACTION OPPORTUNITY!

Make sure you get along to the General Meeting on March 16, scheduled to coincide with the initial bargaining discussions about Academic Workloads on March 11 and following. It will be an important meeting for deciding what we as a Union can do about Management’s stalling tactics on workloads, if all signs at that time are pointing to more delays.

No place for Union Involvement in MQ Decision Making
On the important issues of General Staff Career development, Managing Change Provisions in the Staff Agreement, Unsatisfactory Performance, and Probation it seems that management intends to hold on to the Howard Government’s denial of Union rights to appeal, and the right to play a genuine part in University decision making. The NTEU is seeking to improve appeals processes across all these clauses of the Agreement, and will not back down until we see every trace of HEWRRs gone from the Macquarie staff agreement.

New Computer Surveillance Policy
Despite management team’s claim at Bargaining on Tuesday to know nothing about plans to introduce computer surveillance of all use of staff computers, the NTEU has been made aware of a new policy to be introduced at Macquarie. What the uni is setting out to do has very serious implications for privacy and all members should make themselves aware of the draft policy on the HR website and engage in commenting on the draft.

For further information on the subject of your privacy rights at work see this website: http://www.yourprivacy.co.uk/YourPrivacyRightsAtWork.html

Casuals Claim
The NTEU is seeking to increase the casual loading for casual staff, separate marking pay for casual academics, and the introduction of early career development fellowships, with a view to conversion to ongoing appointments. So far, Management have been receptive to our casuals’ claim.

PDR and 360 degree feedback
The NTEU is seeking to ensure that the supervisory practise of team leaders and managers is reviewed in the PDR process. Stay tuned for more info about this new claim and others the NTEU is seeking improvements to.

If you have any comments, want more information, or would like to get involved, contact Cat Coghlan, Branch Organiser, nteu@mq.edu.au or in the office on 9850 7643.

Macquarie Management to Split Workplace Negotiations in an Attempt to Drive Down General Staff Workplace Rights and Conditions

Macquarie Management recently announced the University’s proposal to split the current collective Agreement into two. That is, to create separate academic and general (“professional”) staff Collective Agreements.

The NTEU is vehemently OPPOSED to any attempt to split general staff bargaining away from academic bargaining. This proposal is simply the Management’s strategy to isolate General Staff so that in subsequent agreements they can begin to wind back the superior conditions that the NTEU has won for ALL staff by negotiating a single agreement.   It is no coincidence that this proposal was hatched during the lead up to the NTEU’s industrial action, when Management refused to negotiate with the NTEU.

The proposal for separate agreements is designed to

a) undermine NTEU bargaining claims which amongst other things seek to restore workplace conditions which were lost under the Howard era,  and

b) stymie our attempts to make major advances on a number of new fronts in general staff bargaining, including but not limited to: improved job evaluation processes; improved workload regulation; improved job security measures; substantial pay improvements; improved workplace consultation and improved union participation in reviews and decision-making.

Across the higher education sector, it is clear that in those institutions where we have ONE Agreement, inclusive of General and Academic staff, we ALL benefit. That has always been our strength in collective negotiations at Macquarie. To split the Agreement is to split the workforce, to fracture workplace conditions and to create two classes of University workers. It will simply ERODE general staff conditions in relation to conditions which will be secured by academic staff. Not surprisingly, Management want to conclude general staff bargaining before academic bargaining to stop any flow on of conditions which will be won by academics.

It is a return to a two class system in the higher education workforce.

Management claim there are differences between academics and general staff. The differences are small and over 90% of our conditions are common and should remain that way. Where there are differences, these are, and can continue to be accommodated within the ONE Agreement.

NTEU rejects Management’s argument that academic issues are “more complex” and warranting a more protracted timeframe. This is an excuse to do nothing and to promote one set of negotiations over another. In this week’s bargaining meeting, Management demonstrated their willingness to engineer a separate agreement by manipulating negotiations.  They responded in detail and made concessions on claims that apply specifically to General Staff, while obfuscating and dithering over claims that apply specifically or substantially to Academic Staff.

Don’t let the University Management get away with this!

In 2004, management tried this on. We rallied, organised and we beat them.  We must repeat this effort again because there is just TOO MUCH at stake.

SO WHAT CAN YOU DO?

1. The NTEU invites all Macquarie University Staff, including non-members, to attend a General meeting, where NTEU representatives will provide further information to staff about:

● The role of the NTEU on campus, in bargaining & how you can get involved in a campaign to support general staff, & ● The current status of negotiations for a new collective agreement.

WHEN? Friday 2nd October

WHERE? C5C T1

TIME? 1-2.00pm.

2.Write to Tim Sprague and the VC and express your opposition to this proposal.

3. Join the NTEU General Staff campaign team