Monash VC raises stakes
By Jeremy Smith
MELBOURNE — On August 7 the vice-chancellor of Monash University declared that management was withdrawing from enterprise bargaining. Its initial offer included several clauses that would seriously weaken the position of the unions and staff. Negotiations remained stalled, and bans are still in place.
Management's initial offer, which began the dispute, included a 5% unconditional pay increase with a further 7% contingent on setting and meeting revenue targets over three years.
Even aside from the loss of other conditions, the pay increases were considered unacceptable by the National Tertiary Education and Industry Union branch leadership. General meetings of the members in late June rejected the offer and imposed bans on the transmission of results.
On August 7, the VC sent staff a revised offer: a 4% rise, backdated to August; a further 5% in 1998 depending on unspecified trade-offs; and a contingency rise (possibly 3%) sometime in 1999. Like the agreement at the University of Melbourne, this would be dependent on an increase in revenue other than federal funding.
In an effort undermine the NTEU's industrial action, the VC has ordered deans to release outstanding results by August 22.
The bans have had some effect, as Toni Bloodworth from the Monash branch executive of the NTEU told Green Left Weekly. "We've just received a revised offer from management, and it seems that it has been 'softened up' a bit. The NTEU branch is wary of them going to an all-staff ballot, although they must know the outcome of the La Trobe vote [where the union won]. Bans are still in place, and more are to be implemented soon.
"A two-hour stop-work meeting has been called [for August 20] to discuss this. Everyone has been given a 4% pay increase as of August 1. This shows that they know we deserve a pay increase without any trade-offs, and the union is determined that conditions will not be eroded at Monash."