University of Canterbury job cuts grave mistake

Media Release
Tertiary Education Union
1 August 2012
University of Canterbury job cuts grave mistake

Canterbury University's decision to cut 150 staff over the next three years is a grave mistake says TEU national president Sandra Grey.

"There is no doubt that the government is making deliberate financial choices that compel the university to cut good quality jobs out of a region that desperately needs those jobs," said Dr Grey. "But the university management also needs to take responsibility for their actions. They need to face up to the university's duty to be a leader in its community."

"The current university management team, both before and after the earthquakes, has unleashed a seemingly endless string of reviews and restructuring that, every time, results in job losses. Each time it confronts a problem its solution is to cut more jobs."

"The Canterbury community expects a well-resourced local university that provides a diverse and high quality education. But it also expects one of its largest employers to stand up for jobs. At the moment the university management is letting down its community on both counts."

"The government and the university management both need to admit that their current strategy is not working. Funding cuts are not the answer, job cuts are not the answer. Piling more and more work onto fewer people is not sustainable, and will not lead to the quality education Cantabrians deserve, no matter how hard staff work," said Dr Grey.

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