|
Dear members
We have reached in-principle agreement with Monash University management on a new deal for all staff at our university.
To answer your questions, we’ve scheduled an all-members information session for next Monday 6 May at 12noon. Register here.
We're in the process of finalising the draft Agreement, after which we will circulate to members.
This is a good deal for Monash staff. With great pride, we can say the new Agreement will enshrine better rights and stronger protections for members across our university: for academics, for professional staff, for staff on fixed-terms and for casual and insecure staff.
Of course, we have not won everything we sought. Negotiations were fiercely contested and we couldn’t get everything we campaigned long and hard for.
But we have secured some very real victories. These encompass better job security, capped workloads, de-casualisation, enhanced leave, stronger consultation and competitive pay.
As part of this agreement, we have won at least 226 new permanent jobs. For the first time, academic workloads are capped. There are new pathways to ongoing work for nearly all categories of fixed-term employees. We have won a commitment for the Unviersity to reduce its reliance on casual work – both academic and professional. The University is rewriting its marking rules.
For the first time ever, there is a mandated right to disconnect for professional staff, and the right to apply to work from home for all staff.
The pay deal is 17% over four years, an extra 1% over what Monash originally offered and a sector-leading pay-deal. There will be a 3% pay rise this year and 3.5% in 2025 and 2026.
Democratic process
The NTEU is a democratic union. We all get a say on whether to accept this possible deal. The union is bound by these democratic processes.
Members get to vote on whether to accept this deal. Then all staff across the University will get to vote.
The new Agreement will need to be checked off by the NTEU National Executive. We will then be in a position to present the draft of the new Enterprise Agreement to all members for their vote of endorsement.
The NTEU Monash bargaining team recommends members accept this deal.
We know you’re going to have a lot of questions. We’ve scheduled an all-members information session for next Monday 6 May at 12noon. Register here.
The meeting will be a briefing where we set out the details of the deal, explain the fine print and answer your questions.
Even though we didn’t win everything, this is a victory for all staff at our university. It was won by the action of Monash NTEU members. This campaign has been two years of sweat and tears. We have stood side-by-side to demand a better University, putting a comprehensive reform package to Monash management and fighting for it at the table and on the pickets.
It was our renewed determination this year to return to strike action that finally moved Monash management to accept our key demands.
This is not the end of our efforts. The task now is to bed down these victories and to lock them in. The best way to ensure these new entitlements are upheld is to strengthen our power in the workplace. We plan to move swiftly into a new phase of organising, talking to our colleagues about the rights and conditions we have been fighting for.
We want to thank everyone in our union at Monash for their hard work. Many members have been involved beyond the negotiators, including delegates and rank and file members who've turned up to pickets, put up posters, spoken at rallies, or baked cookies for our events. The NTEU Monash negotiating team has put in an extraordinary effort. All up, there have been more than 48 major bargaining meetings with Monash HR.
This sustained campaign to fight for a better university is a testament to the generosity and determination of NTEU members at Monash University.
You'll hear more from us soon. For now, don't forget to register for next Monday's information session.
In union,
NTEU Monash Branch
|