The Australian Higher Education Industrial Association says Murdoch U should be congratulated not castigated for its win in the Fair Work Commission
“Murdoch University should be applauded, not castigated, for seeking the changes it has through the processes available under the Fair Work Act. And let us be clear about a few important matters. Murdoch University has made it very clear that it is not seeking to drop people’s pay. Indeed, it offered pay increases in its bargaining negotiations. Similarly, Murdoch University has not sought to extinguish other key employment entitlements. Its focus has been on the removal of process prescriptions such as those that impact on the ability of the university to effectively manage change, workload allocation, staff disciplinary matters, and disputes about the operation of the agreement,” AHEIA is advising member universities.
This is core business for the association which hopes universities will push for simplified working conditions in the present round of enterprise negotiations.
“We need modern enterprise agreements – not enterprise agreements that retain federal award prescriptions that date back 25-30 years and which have overlays of bureaucracy built upon through six or seven rounds of bargaining,” AHEIA Executive Director Stuart Andrews says.