That stage is reached in enterprise bargaining, where managements have had it with union negotiators and want to pitch their offer direct to staff

At Uni Sydney there’s been an open webinar and Australian Catholic U, COO Stephen Weller has sent the university’s proposed agreement, (fair, balanced and sustainable”) to all staff.

No harm in trying – the National Tertiary Education Union and those representing some general staff don’t have that many members at universities (the electoral roll for the NTEU  at Uni Sydney has 2200). But many more staff listen to the unions on wages and conditions. Universities that put offers on to staff votes  that unions oppose, generally lose. (Victoria U went down in a heap on two votes in the last enterprise agreement negotiation (CMM February 6 and 25 2019)

And at Uni Sydney, in the last bargaining round then VC Michael Spence asked staff if they wanted to vote on management’s offer or for negotiations with unions to continue. Some 61 per cent of the 4000 people who voted in the vote about voting wanted negotiations to continue, which they did (CMM September 7 2017).