The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) has urged Southern Cross University (SCU) workers to reject a proposed enterprise agreement being pushed by SCU Vice-Chancellor, Tyrone Carlin, without the support of the NTEU.
SCU staff will vote on the adoption of a new enterprise agreement between Wednesday and Friday this week, with the NTEU heavily campaigning for staff to vote 'no'.
"We're extremely disappointed that Tyrone Carlin is trying to bring in an Agreement that entrenches a significant real-wage cut, removes long-standing entitlements, and does nothing to address the serious workload and job security issues our members have raised," NTEU NSW Interim Secretary Vince Caughley said.
The union has highlighted that the Vice-Chancellor's proposal entrenches a real pay cut, has no workload relief, no meaningful opportunities for job security, less leave flexibility, removes procedural fairness and strips existing First Nations jobs targets.
SCU workers recently received individual letters from the Vice-Chancellor urging them to vote, which was absent of a single argument in favour beyond asserting it is 'fair and reasonable' and a result of a 'careful process'.
"The Vice-Chancellor has been doing the rounds trying to sell his insulting agreement and we find it incredibly disingenuous of him to mention a 'careful process' - unless he means he's taken great care to reject every single claim that our members have put forward.", says Caughley.
"We asking staff to vote 'no' to losing real pay and conditions and send a message to the Vice-Chancellor to get back to the negotiating table."
"NTEU members, professional, academic, First Nations and casual, have resolved to vote NO to this agreement and we're asking all staff to do the same. We believe our public institutions and SCU staff in particular deserve more."
