Union protest likely to hit funding, jobs: varsity chief

University of Auckland Vice-Chancellor Stuart McCutcheon. Photo / Martin Sykes

The University of Auckland is in danger of losing millions of dollars in funding and sliding in national rankings as a result of a continuing fight with staff.

More than 300 academic staff, including more than 90 professors and associate professors, are refusing to submit their research portfolios as part of a growing protest over control of their academic working conditions.

As a result, their portfolios will be excluded from national research funding calculations and the university, which receives the most funding nationwide, will slip in the research rankings.

The slip means millions of dollars would be lost from the university's budget, and staff are being warned that in return their jobs could be at risk.

The protest is part of a dispute over contract negotiations in which the university wants to remove core academic conditions related to research and professional practice.

Tertiary Education Union national secretary Sharn Riggs said staff regretted having to take the action but their concerns were not being addressed.

"Members strongly believe that by jeopardising the conditions that enable them to perform their professional responsibilities, the vice-chancellor is threatening the credibility of the university," she said.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Stuart McCutcheon said the union had rejected "a very generous offer" of a 4 per cent increase in salary and an extra week of leave - an offer that had been accepted by 1200 non-union academics.

He said the rejection had already caused staff to forgo more than $1 million in salary and benefits and he warned there would be other consequences if the protest action continued.

"If this new action does cause a reduction in the university's performance-based research funding revenue, it will undoubtedly lead to staff redundancies.

"I trust that the union has contemplated the consequences of this for its members."

In 2009, performance-based funding was worth $39 million to the university, or $24,000 for each full-time academic.

In 2006, the university had 200 of the 600 A-rated researchers in the country.

Other staff protest action has included daily pickets outside the vice-chancellor's office, targeting public events at the university, wearing rosettes at graduation ceremonies, stop-work meetings, and a large public rally of students and staff.

Auckland University Students' Association president Joe McCory said students supported the staff but did not endorse the action they were taking.

He hoped Professor McCutcheon would sit down with the union and find a solution before students were affected.

"The only reason the staff are doing this is because the VC [vice-chancellor] is refusing to meet them and settle that negotiation."

FUNDING
Total performance-based research funding won by each university, 2009
University of Auckland 29 per cent
University of Otago 21 per cent
Massey University 15 per cent
University of Canterbury 10 per cent
Victoria University 9 per cent
University of Waikato 6 per cent
Lincoln University 4 per cent
AUT 3 per cent
Other* 3 per cent

*Colleges of education included in other.