The university offers a “cumulative pay increase” of 16.99 per cent over four years

“In other words” Chief People Officer Kate Wittenden is at pains to make clear, “your salary will be almost 17 per cent higher on the first pay day of 2026 than it was in January 2023.”

The offer includes the 3.5 per cent paid in February, with four more increases to come through to January ’26. Plus there will one off payments of $1250 and $1000, depending on pay grade, when the agreement kicks-in.

To all of which the campus branch of the National Tertiary Education Union does not say “stuff” nor “and nonsense” but that appears the general idea.

According to the union’s Lachlan Clohesy and Milan Pintos-Lopez the new 12.5 per cent annualises at 3.2 per cent a year, “among the worst in the sector in percentage terms if accepted.

Union members are now voting on protected industrial action, “if you haven’t, hopefully this low ball offer will serve as additional motivation to vote,” they tell members.