|
Sep 17, 2009 at 09:05 AM |
 Staff and students at the UWS Kingswood campus strike against the university on Wednesday.
The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) announced recently that Fair Australia ballots held for university staff had resulted in a huge vote for industrial action at UWS with 84 per cent in support.
NTEU UWS Branch President, Terry Mason, said industrial action reflected how the Union’s members were sick of huge workloads, increased casualisation and staff being ignored by management on key issues affecting education.
“Our industry has been appallingly managed for some time and the threat to our international reputation for quality education is being put at risk,” Mr Mason said.
Several UWS students missed out on classes to stand beside their teachers on the picket line, with the President of the UWS Hive Student Union, Jacob Carswell-Doherty, saying a strike was the only way forward.
“We are behind the strike 100 per cent. Not only is this the only way forward for staff, but the student union sees the strike as the best way to improve the quality of education for students at UWS,” he said.
The Hive Student Union encouraged students to show support for the strike to send a clear message to the university that “enough is enough”.
“We encouraged students not to attend classes and not to cross the picket line around the university,” Mr Carswell-Doherty said.
“This is a preliminary action by the NTEU. It is about sending a message to university administration to say they can’t continue on the way they have by lowering teaching standards and raising student fees.”
In an email sent to students prior to the strike, UWS Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Corporate Strategy and Service), Rhonda Hawkins, said the University valued its staff.
“It is regrettable that the NTEU would conduct any action which would disrupt teaching and University operations,” Ms Hawkins’ email read.
“The NTEU may continue to conduct industrial action throughout the ongoing negotiations and the University will seek to continue in a business as usual manner.”
- Emily Crane
Please login or register to add comments |
