But jobs are already being shed. In recent weeks, over 1,000 job cuts have been announced across Australia. Here in Victoria, Fed Uni, La Trobe and Swinburne have announced redundancies, while Monash and Melbourne have signalled no funding for sessional staff in 2025. In Canberra, ANU has even asked staff to defer their NTEU-negotiated pay increases to avoid further cuts.
But there’s more to the story.
These caps are providing a convenient justification for universities to downsize and shift more workload onto fewer staff—plans many institutions were already considering. This isn’t just about responding to government policy; it’s about organisational priorities.
While student numbers remain steady, universities are prioritising real estate, marketing and consultants over the people who make universities run. And during the pandemic, despite record profits, universities still made significant jobs cuts and increased workloads. Now, international student caps are being used to justify similar actions.
We believe there’s a better way forward.
Join us for a statewide all-staff online meeting to discuss:
- How this will impact you and your colleagues.
- How universities are using these caps to justify pre-planned downsizing.
- How we can stand together and push back
Online event: Higher Education jobs at risk: what to know, what’s next, what you can do
When: 12:30pm, Wednesday, 27 November, 2024
To attend, complete the form on this page to get the Zoom link.