General Staff Union condemns anti-democratic, anti-education IR changes

Changes announced today are just a subterfuge for anti-democratic controls over universities, cost cutting and disenfranchisement and depowerment of the workforce.

"The changes announced by Ministers Andrews and Nelson will not improve our universities - they will further accelerate Australia's brain drain and push university education towards mediocrity", says John Cahill, General Secretary of the Public Service Association and NSW Branch Secretary of the Community & Public Sector Union.

The Andrews/Nelson proposals aim to force people into the Government's unpopular individual workplace agreements.

"What they have been unable to do by persuasion they are now trying by coercion. They are eliminating choice", says Mr Cahill.

"Their long term aim is to reduce labour costs through reduced wages and lesser conditions.

"The claim they want more flexibility for university managers. The sort of flexibility they are promoting will increase staff turnover and decrease staff morale. Neither outcomes are good for education.

"No university management or council and no university staff body has asked for any of these changes. Nelson and Andrews think they know what's best for universities, and that the experienced people do not.

"They say they want direct relationships between employee and employer. This is nonsense. Employers the size of universities employ Human Resources staff to do their contact with employees. The employers, the university councils, never go near the employees. This is simply about trying to squeeze out the union. (Note: It is not about squeezing out the universities expensive industrial relations lawyers and other advisers.)

"They say that all employees must be offered their anti-Australian "Australian Workplace Agreements". If they were fair dinkum they would be saying all new employees should be offered award coverage or union-negotiated enterprise coverage, and should be told their rights. Even criminals get told their rights, but not employees in John Howard's world.

"The federal government should withdraw these outrageous and negative ideological proposals and start doing something to actually improve Australian education and the retention of our educated people."