University of Tasmania staff to strike after National Tertiary Education Union vote

University of Tasmania students are due to receive their Semester 2 exam results in just over a fortnight – but it’s been revealed they may have a longer wait ahead of them.

Staff at the University of Tasmania (UTAS) will walk off the job next week, warning that end-of-year exam results could be delayed as they wrangle with management over a new enterprise agreement.

However, a senior UTAS executive says the majority of the university’s workforce did not vote in the National Tertiary Education Union’s (NTEU) ballot to formalise the industrial action.

On the afternoon of Thursday, November 17, academic and professional staff are expected to stop work across all campuses.

NTEU Tasmanian division industrial officer Emma Gill said UTAS employees were seeking greater job security, more manageable workloads, “quality” pay increases, and academic freedom protections in the new staff agreement.

“Staff have been more than patient with the administration, however their patience is now running thin,” she said.

University of Tasmania building, Hobart CBD. Picture: Richard Jupe

“Staff have held off on the decision to strike as long as possible, however they now see no option due to the reticence of UTAS management to adequately address their concerns.”

Ms Gill said any classes that were scheduled during the period of the strike would be affected, as would student support services.

“There is the potential that the finalisation of exam results will be delayed,” she said.

The union is urging management to “meaningfully engage” with NTEU members in a bid to resolve their differences.

“If there is enough progress from management, we will consider calling off the strike – otherwise the strike will go ahead,” Ms Gill said.

Exam results for Semester 2 are due to be handed down on November 23.

The NTEU would not reveal exactly how many members it had at UTAS, other than to say there were “many hundreds”.

The university delivered a 4.6 per cent pay rise to its staff this year and chief people officer Kristen Derbyshire said work was under way to finalise the staff agreement.

“The vote for protected action is by NTEU members only. The majority of our staff did not vote in the ballot,” she said.

“While we respect the right of NTEU members to take protected industrial action, we are concerned about any action that may have an adverse impact on our students or staff.

“We will continue to bargain in good faith and look forward to resolving this round constructively and to achieving a good outcome for our people.”

Tasmanian University Student Association (TUSA) president Sophie Crothers acknowledged the strike action would “likely impact many students”, but ultimately backed the move, saying staff’s “working conditions are [students’] learning conditions”.