Combined university unions national bargaining

September stop work meetings

MUMECA Bargaining 2009

The purpose of the meeting is to

• Hear from the bargaining team about negotiations so far

• Discuss the options for the way ahead

• Confirm instructions for the bargaining team

Agenda

• Background• Bargaining update• Discussion• Resolutions

Unions’ National Claims• One Year Term• Salary increase: the greater of either 4% or $2400• No compulsory redundancies• Workload: 37.5 hours for general staff and transparency in

allocating teaching for academic staff• Annual leave: minimum 25 days per year (includes uni holidays)• Gender Equity Audit• Union benefit: any improvements not passed on to non-

members for at least 6 months• Union rights: statutory provisions included in CA

Negotiations so far

• 4 days of national bargaining• 3 of those days with the services of a mediator• Employer opposition to MECA hardened

Negotiations so far

• Finally agreed BPA and received employers’ claims

• Employers sought to have MECA claim bargained in isolation from other claims

• Only agreed to talk to their claims one by one• Have not responded to our salary claim

Negotiations so far

• Have now refused to meet again nationally• Inviting us to bargain locally• They think this does not rule out a MECA

Options – Industrial Action?• Bargaining team think employer

opposition to MECA so entrenched we would need sustained serious industrial action to change their position

• Assessment that members more concerned about other issues this year: job security, salaries

Options – Legal Action?• Our legislation not very helpful to us in

achieving a MECA• Worsened by case law, including AUS and

Auckland DHB cases• Are investigating legal options but, even if

successful, they will not happen in time for this year’s bargaining

Options – other choices?

• To meet with them locally and explore the possibilities of achieving SECAs

• Leave the MECA claim on the table

Local Bargaining

• National union claims still apply• Opportunity to achieve further standardisation in

the sector• Respond to employer claims• Retain ability to take national industrial action• May be able to use MECA as leverage to prevent

local bargaining dragging on

National Industrial Action• Chance that some members will see very low, or

even 0% pay offers from employers this year• Although most employer claims modest,

Massey are seeking major changes to general staff pay scales

• Local members may not be able to resist these clawbacks or achieve better pay offers by themselves

• National industrial action only used in serious situations

Bargaining team recommendation

•That we explore the possibilities of achieving SECAs locally•That we leave the MECA claim on the table•That we investigate legal action to overturn the AUS and Auckland DHB cases

Employer Claims: AUT•Salary progression – increments subject to performance•Progression to SLAB related to performance•Workload – update definitions•TTH– Remove 20 hour weekly maxima– Spread over 37 weeks– Rename bands– Remove semester limitations

•Workload policy•Terminology – career path and teaching path•Extend lecturer scale downwards

Employer Claims: Auckland• Some relevant to FoEd CA only – tidy up• General staff:

– Add duties of employer and employee– Salary & development review – reference new

provisions as per ongoing working party– Suspension – allow employer to suspend during

disciplinary– Eye tests – remove clause and refer to current

policy– Tidy up claims

Employer Claims: Auckland• Academic staff• Remove a number of clauses and just refer to policy:

– Research and study leave– Outside activities– Standards and criteria– Disciplinary guidelines– Eye tests

A number of tidy up claims

Employer Claims: Waikato• 2 year term

Employer Claims: Massey• multi-year term and align date with financial year•Establish a working party to examine the sustainability of the current annual standard salary increment system for general staff and look at alternative methods for both general and academic staff•Spectacles – changes to clarify and limit entitlements•Change of wording to investigation and warning procedure clause

Employer Claims: VictoriaAll staff except FOE• Two year term• Clarify computation of retirement leave• Remove discipline procedures and replace with policy• General staff: Delete extra leave for new fitness etc workers• Academic:

– Attendance clause – new wording– Private work – pro rata for part timers– Resignation – reduce notice from 6 to 3 months

• Research assistants etc:– Changes to removal expenses

• FOE – 1 year term

Employer Claims: Canterbury• ‘Tidy up’ changes• 3 year term• Recognise Kiwisaver• Redraft a number of clauses to comply with law and refer to specific current

legislation• Deductions – extend right of university to make deductions from pay• Academic

– Changes to terms of employment– Changes to termination of employment, including right of employer to

suspend• General

– Changes to overtime, Saturday/Sunday, call backs, travelling etc– Retirement – allow for termination on grounds of medical incapacity

Employer Claims: Lincoln

• Employer has tabled no claims

Employer Claims: Otago• Parental leave – delete as policy is superior• Research funded fixed-term staff – alerted they want to table a claim on this• Policies and procedures – new wording• Redundancy – correct oversight• General

– Annual review appeals – new wording– Annual leave – rewording to clarify for those based outside Dunedin– Long service leave – new calculation

• Academic– Clarify coverage of assistant research fellows– Remuneration – correct some inaccuracies

DiscussionBargaining team wish to hear your views and

answer your questions

Resolution

• That:– The bargaining team can explore the possibilities

of achieving SECAs locally– We leave the MECA claim on the table– We investigate legal action to overturn the AUS

and Auckland DHB cases

2nd resolution• The MECA claim will not be withdrawn until all the local

agreements are in a position to be settled