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Katarina Williams/Stuff
Hundreds of striking staff at Victoria University of Wellington on Wednesday.
Unionised staff at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington are walking off the job for two hours on Tuesday, shortly after incoming vice-chancellor Professor Nic Smith hosts a forum on campus.
It’s the latest example of industrial action taken by Tertiary Education Union (TEU) and Public Service Association members across the country’s eight universities, as contract negotiations with their university employers remain at an impasse.
The unions are seeking an 8% pay bump in response to rising inflation, however universities say they aren’t in a financial position to meet such a demand.
Dougal McNeill, Victoria University’s TEU branch president, in opening the rally for striking members said if there was a real problem of funding in the sector paying staff properly “then we need to have a national conversation about properly funding the sector”.
TEU branch organiser Nicki Wilford confirmed there would be a stop-work meeting on October 24. “We want to get a decent offer for all of you. It’s what you deserve.”
Stuff/ Jericho Rock-Archer
Victoria University of Wellington’s new vice-chancellor, Professor Nic Smith, explains his vision for the future of the university. First published September 20.
The rally, which started at 11.30am on Victoria University’s Kelburn campus, was indicative of the “depth of staff discontent” the new vice-chancellor was inheriting, Wilford said.
READ MORE:
* Victoria, Massey university staff to strike for two hours this week in support of 8% pay rise
* Staff at all eight universities to vote on strike action in bid to secure 8% pay rise
* AUT staff say vice-chancellor’s handling of redundancies ‘adds insult to injury’
* University staff to stage half-day strike as pay negotiations stall
* Massey staff feeling overworked and undervalued take industrial action
“We call on Nic Smith to listen and intervene. The university needs to come back to the table with a significantly improved offer or this campaign is just getting started,” Wilford said in a statement on Monday.
By noon strikers were snaking around the university chanting “it’s time to invest in staff … underpaid, overworked, pay us fair, we know our worth”.
Katarina Williams
One of hundreds of striking staff at Victoria University taking actionon the Kelburn campus on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, the university’s director people and capability Mark Daldorf confirmed striking staff would not have their pay docked.
“Given the comparatively limited impact on students and the timing of the strike (which includes what is ordinarily considered the lunch period) staff who strike today will not have their pay reduced on this occasion,” Daldorf said.
Students at the Wellington-based university were currently on a two-week study break ahead of trimester 2 assessments.
JUAN ZARAMA PERINI/Stuff
Tuesday’s industrial action follows an earlier strike by union members at Victoria University of Wellington, pictured, on October 6 calling for pay rises to meet inflation.
Strike action at Victoria University will kick-start a flurry of industrial action across campuses this week, with Massey University staff staging a two-hour strike on Wednesday, and Lincoln University union members walking off the job for a half a day on Thursday.
It also followed the first coordinated strike involving staff from the country’s eight universities in 20 years on October 6.
Speaking about looming strike action at Massey, TEU organiser Lawrence O’Halloran said the university’s pay offer was “simply not good enough” in light of the cost of living crisis its members were grappling with.
“Massey staff are striking because they continue to feel overworked and underappreciated,” O’Halloran said.
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