[TEU-academic] ] TEU update
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Fri Jun 14 2024 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Tēnā koutou katoa
Make your contribution to our 2024 bargaining campaign. Your union has always been people-powered and runs on the diversity of experience, talents and interests of you and your fellow members. If you are willing to contribute to a successful bargaining process this year, you can do so without having to be a part of the bargaining team. A great way is to join the Bargaining Support Network. Please let us know that you are interested by going herehttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScWzzo0IvLV735isVqSdHDugTOR7crzWli4rn-uoQiDncRQ6Q/viewform?usp=sf_link.
The strength that our collective voice has in bargaining depends on our membership. This is the time you must each step forward and talk to your colleagues to get them to join the union. Only union members get to have input into bargaining, vote on offers to decide if your employer’s offer is good enough and if required take action to strengthen the offer. This is all about numbers. Please encourage your colleagues to join up: www.teu.ac.nz/joinhttp://www.teu.ac.nz/join
Faculty restructure. We reported last week of a meeting called by the Dean of Education and Social Work (EDSW) in which the employer has proposed changes, resulting in 17.4 FTE of academic staff be cut to adjust the staff:student ratio, and net cuts to course offerings. The organisers hosted a meeting for members yesterday. Members raised a number of questions related to consultation timing, data accuracy, impact on Māori and Pacific staff, stakeholder input from outside the university, and many others. We have set up a google doc, for affected members to raise questions. Contact Nicole.Wallace@teu.ac.nz for details
Health, safety, and wellbeing. The university seeks to decrease its costs and improve outcomes for staff by using an organisation other than ACC (in this case, WellNZ) to manage injury-at-work claims. Every year, however, ACC audits the university’s systems, record-keeping, and policymaking to ensure best practice. For the most part this is a system that works well, saves money, and results in safer, quicker returns to work (although we encourage members to report issues with this system). Conspicuous by its absence in any of the documents presented to HSW representatives (n~=100) this week is anything related to wellbeing, occupational health or similar topics. When asked, we were told that wellbeing is a project still in the “discovery phase”. Unfortunately, it has been in this phase (or its equivalent) for at least six years without evidence of progress.
A TEU representative is formally asked to co-sign the documentation that the University submits to ACC. In previous years, we have signed, in expectation that the wellbeing element would be developed. The branch committee, at its meeting on Wednesday, voted to decline to sign this document until we have a firm commitment of (1) a timeline and content for policies and procedures to protect and enhance staff wellbeing, and (2) resuscitation of the Workload and Wellbeing working group agreed to at bargaining 2019-20, and (3) the regular collection and presentation to HSW committee of deidentified information related to work-related stress leave, burnout, bullying, harassment, discrimination and related psychosocial harm. We have advised HR of this and await their response.
Academic freedom. Last week, the VC announced the Draft Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom Policy - The University of Aucklandhttps://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/about-us/about-the-university/policy-hub/policy-development-review/documents-for-consultation/draft-freedom-of-expression-and-academic-freedom-policy.html. It is open for staff and student consultation until 5pm on Friday 28 June. Next week, the all-staff forum will be moved to 12-1pm, Monday 17 June, to facilitate discussion on the draft policyhttps://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/notices/2024/draft-freedom-expression-academic-freedom-policy-consultation.html. Members of the Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom Advisory Group will be present to provide an overview of the policy and answer your questions. We encourage our members to read and carefully consider the details of this policy, and to attend and ask questions at the forum. We also encourage members to provide feedback to academicfreedom.consultation@auckland.ac.nz. Members are also welcome to share their reactions to the policy with us. Email me, in strict confidence.
And reminders that:
· further information about the draft policy, along with FAQs and explanatory scenarios, can be viewed on the Draft Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom Policy notice pagehttps://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/notices/2024/draft-freedom-expression-academic-freedom-policy-consultation.html.
· a primer on what academic freedom is in Aotearoa, why it is worth defending, and what has threatened it in the last generation, by ex-TEU President Emeritus Professor Jane Kelsey on What academic freedom means in contemporary Aotearoa | Tertiary Education Union – Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa teu.ac.nz and related items on those pages.
Union benefits and health insurance. Did you know that as a TEU member you are eligible to join HealthCarePlus, a not-for-profit organisation, co-owned by unions including the TEU? Click here to see the new HealthCarePlus websitehttps://info.healthcareplus.org.nz/e3t/Ctc/GD+113/cGXhs04/MVwy7_4T_VtW3d_g8G2MrQFVW2ZRfP15gbXb3N2z6H2l3qgyTW6N1vHY6lZ3pJW5f-g-r405vJbW5tZZ0s7Jttr-W1CPG5F7yZF6WW43N51c5NjWQ-W2PjT2924SZrJW447ZcX3zcr3vW4x_J8V7jGwHKW6QRGHl5jybVPW8wrM_98r12WQVf7tdg75JXMsW9fMb4_5K3fkbW41KhcS89mYbDW3wNqTz3khXHHW5WZ6gY6qy9K6W8j3fz18669tXW8-_P7L8KJb52W3Blw402KhSs0W1QLTRg1zqQZqW7V8j9P4C839kW62FkKR26tTHgW6Jvt_R1cBtPVW4QnqfZ22lGRWdmtPgx04 and sign-up. It is free to join.
UniSaver elections. The UniSaver election for the two member-appointed directors is currently running. All members of UniSaver (join if you are eligible!) will have received an email with a link to vote. Unisaver manages over $1.5 billion of member funds so how they are invested is important. We encourage you to look closely at candidates’ commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices where UniSaver may have been lagging.
Massey U’s online exam system fails. "Of serious worry is how students can access the personal details of other students - including first and last names, emails and student ID numbers. We believe this constitutes a data breach.” Massey University forced to cancel online exams due to technical problems | RNZ Newshttps://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/519345/massey-university-forced-to-cancel-online-exams-due-to-technical-problems and Massey University turns off system monitoring cheating as outrage grows on cancelled exams msn.com
Labour strife in other university systems. Brazil: In Defense of Brazil’s Public Universities (Again) msn.com, Nigeria: Strike deadlock shuts Nigerian universities for months - The Standard Evewoman Magazine standardmedia.co.ke, Sri Lanka: University non-academic staff to continue strike action adaderana.lk, and the US: University of California Grad Student Strike Hits 6 Campuses yahoo.com
The high school English curriculum. TEU member Claudia Rozas (EDSW) asks: Shakespeare, Beowulf and Chaucer could be back in the NZ English curriculum – should they be? theconversation.com
As AI systems improve, what (or who) will emerge? Intelligent beings? Alison Gopnik (UC Berkeley) and Melanie Mitchell (Santa Fé Institute) are sceptical. How to Raise Your Artificial Intelligence: A Conversation | Los Angeles Review of Books lareviewofbooks.org
Education, Israel, Gaza. Israel’s Universities: The Crackdown | Neve Gordon and Penny Green | The New York Review of Books nybooks.com and This is scholasticide | Chandni Desai | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/jun/08/israel-destroying-schools-scholasticide.
Reminders.
- Office hours on campus. We have a TEU office on campus, Room 417 in the Fisher Building on Waterloo Quadrant. Ordinarily, TEU Organisers Nicole and Andy have walk-in office hours every Friday between 10am and 2pm. Otherwise, they can be contacted by email: nicole.wallace@teu.ac.nz or andy.hipkiss@teu.ac.nz
- Academic Workload Guidelines have finally been released. This was work with unofficial, de facto TEU input and we thank our members for being engaged in this process. Academic staff: make sure you read these (along with the Academic Workload Principles and Policy herehttps://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/QpWvCnx1ANU1lXx3S9fMtP?domain=auckland.ac.nz). If your workload is not consistent with either the Guidelines or the Policy, raise this with your Academic Head. And contact the organisers, Nicole or Andy, if the issue is not resolved. Academic Workload Guidelines - The University of Aucklandhttps://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/4tu_CoV1B6f1lD8PSzwPE3?domain=staff.auckland.ac.nz
- Bargaining 101: What is Collective Bargaining? Collective Bargaining is the way that members, through their union representatives, negotiate their collective agreement with their employers to determine their pay, terms and conditions of employment. Terms of employment include things like hours of work, annual and sick leave and the way job progression works. In collective bargaining both union members and the employer bring claims to the other party of what changes they would like to see in the renewed collective agreement. You can find the current Collective Agreements at Waipapa Taumata Rau/ UoA at https://uoacollectiveagreements.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/collective-employment-agreements/https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/dYMtCzvk8xtyQ7XAh4etZU?domain=uoacollectiveagreements.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/.
- Fundraising and fitness with the TEU’s Te Kahukura Rainbow Network. This year, some of our Rainbow Network/Te Kahukura members are participating in Sweat With Pride, with proceeds going to Rainbow charities Burnett Foundation, RainbowYOUTH, InsideOUT and Outline to further their work in health, counselling and school support. Please consider sponsoring your fellow unionists, joining the team, or sharing amongst your networks: Click herehttps://www.sweatwithpride.com/fundraisers/tekahukurasweatsquad.
Please consider sharing this and subsequent Updates (electronically or print) with colleagues who may benefit from knowing what we are doing.
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Barry Hughes, PhD School of Psychology Phone: +64 9 923 5265 Extension: 85265
