Staff at the University of Canberra have gone on strike in a dispute over pay and conditions.
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They said the university's offer of a 3.5 per cent pay rise in effect means a cut in their real wages at a time when price inflation was far higher.
The union said the offer came after executives at the university secured remuneration packages of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"While staff are being asked to tighten their belts, the Vice Chancellor's package was worth almost 1 million dollars, and hundreds of thousands were paid in executive bonuses, according to the UC 2021 Annual Report," Lachlan Clohesy, the leader of the union in the ACT, said.
Dr Clohesy said salaries at the university were currently linked to the consumer price index but the university wanted to break that link and cap rises. He said this "would likely cost staff thousands of dollars a year from January 2024 if implemented".
The university's deputy vice chancellor for academic affairs said that the deals done with executives were individually negotiated and not part of the negotiation with the union. Professor Geoffrey Crisp would not confirm that in one case the package was worth just short of a million dollars.
He said that the pay offer to staff was "responsible", though he conceded it was less than the rate of price inflation.
"We would love to put more on the table but we believe that 3.5 per cent is a responsible amount that can be put on the table," he said.
Members of the National Tertiary Education Union had voted unanimously to go on strike for five hours from noon on Tuesday.
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As well as pay, working conditions need improvement, the union said.
"Union members are prepared to consider fair and reasonable proposals in relation to salary - but we need to see improvements from the university on working conditions like workloads and job security. At present, staff are being asked to give up a lot for very little in return," Dr Clohesy said.
When the strike was first mooted, the university's Chief People Officer Wendy Flint said job security remained the number one priority.
"The UC bargaining team cannot agree to salary increases that the university is unable to afford," she said.
Ms Flint said the university would work to minimise the potential for disruptions to students amid the strike.
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Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
