University management and the National Tertiary Education Union disagree about a proposed workload model, particularly the student consultation component

Two conciliation conferences did not resolve the dispute and so Fair Work Commissioner Platt suggested it would be “prudent” of the university to “consider the current data … to inform the decision-making process and identify impacts.”

If the university agrees and does the work by beginning March, consultation with staff could be complete by April 1, with a proposal for 2023 by the end of the month and any adjustments for a final model by June.

The idea of using data to develop workload models appeals to the FWC.

Last year the commission concluded Uni Sunshine Coast should “either conduct research or gather data to develop workload models based on a median or average time taken to do the work,” (CMM December 2).

To which NTEU Queensland secretary Michael McNally responded, “this is an opportunity for university managements across the country to sit down with the NTEU and develop some rigorous and, most importantly, reasonably accurate models to allocate work for academic staff.