Curtin University staff have rejected a non-union agreement last week which was strongly condemned by the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU). 

The result of the vote was revealed on Monday afternoon after significant pressure from the Union to release the results of the electronic ballot closing last Thursday evening.

The proposed agreement offered, on pay, a 2.2% increase per annum. Inflation is currently at 8.3% in Western Australia and not projected to fall below 2.2% in the medium term, meaning the proposed agreement would have represented a substantial real pay cut for staff.

The proposal also included, at best, tokenistic improvements to workloads and non-enforceable, lower First Nations employment targets.

The University believed that this deal was good enough for staff and is still “reconciling” the vote to ensure voter eligibility prior to releasing an official final result next week.

The Curtin Branch NTEU President Professor Scott Fitzgerald highlighted that “The university posted a massive surplus of more than $113 million, so it’s clearly not a case of the money not being available.”

“This offer is an insult to the hard work staff at Curtin put in every single day.”

A non-union ballot can cause trepidation for a union as it can act as a test of union strength at a worksite.

In this blatant attempted union-busting ballot it was clear that the University was banking on a perfect storm of factors to get this deal through. 

The timing of the ballot disenfranchised many casual workers who must have worked in the week preceding the ballot.  

Curtin’s senior management attempted to persuade the Student Guild not to stand in solidarity with the NTEU. This solidarity allows the resources of the student union to provide for the distribution of material that management found disagreeable.

The partnership between the trade union of a University and the student union is integral to the improvement of the conditions of both parties. A symbiotic relationship represented by a well-versed adage: “Staff working conditions are student learning conditions”.

Senior management’s test of the collective strength of the union movement was palpable. Whether through the mass amplification of the “vote yes” campaign orchestrated by the Chief Operating Officer or through the suppression of the voice of staff, the University left nothing in the tank.

Students in solidarity with staff, distributed over 500 posters around the Curtin Bentley and City campuses that were systematically removed from the University within hours. At the same time, every meeting room on campus had prominent “vote yes” propaganda plastered on the screen backgrounds.

This behaviour became commonplace and emblematic of the University’s approach to the agreement. 

The University attempted to stop the free communication of union members with their colleagues through all-staff emails, blocking of the NTEU website or vague threats of discipline.

Meanwhile, the Student Guild reserved every one of its poster spaces for the Union, facilitated the use of Guild digital screens, and communicated with over 30,000 of the staff and student members.  The Guild also encouraged staff and students to share their impressions of the deal (or the University’s blatant union-busting) via social media and the iconic Confessions at Curtin page.

The Guild also ensured students were aware of industrial action and why staff are fighting for better.

Student union solidarity supports the union as they have the important conversations with staff, whether by phone or on the ground, to make sure they hear both sides of the story.

This non-union ballot defeat sends clear signals to the University management that you don’t mess with the strength of staff-student union solidarity.

 

Note: Dylan Botica is the President of the Curtin Student Guild and a member of the National Tertiary Education Union.