The National Tertiary Education Union has accused Monash University of the systemic underpayment of casual academics and demanded University management pay back affected staff.
In a letter to the Vice Chancellor, the union alleges Monash University is systemically breaching the Fair Work Act and the Enterprise Agreement by failing to properly pay the wages owed to casual academics across multiple faculties, including the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Business and Economics.
The union accused Monash of directing casual academics to be available for student consultation during a weekly, scheduled consultation hour, outside of the delivery of tutorials. Rather than paying staff for that hour, academics are told it is ‘associated work’ for the purpose of that tutorial rate.
“Casual academics with highly insecure working conditions are being told to work for free,” said NTEU Monash Branch President Ben Eltham.
“It’s not only a breach of the Enterprise Agreement, it’s a breach of the law.
“Vice-Chancellor Margaret Gardner told a Senate Committee in February that she was ‘committed to ensuring our staff are paid correctly for the work they’ve done.’ But how committed is she?
“Monash must take immediate steps to ensure casual academics are paid for all the teaching they do, and to back-pay all affected staff.
“We have also demanded Monash engage a third party to undertake an external audit into historic underpayments.
“If the University doesn’t come to an acceptable resolution, we will take them to the Federal Court.”
“It is deeply disappointing but entirely unsurprising the union has had to bring yet another case of wage theft to the attention of a Vice Chancellor,” said NTEU National President Dr Alison Barnes.
“Universities continue to pretend this is not a systemic issue underpinning their business models.
“This is why, beyond criminalising wage theft, Education Minister Jason Clare needs to start working to implement recommendations from the ALP-led Senate Select Committee on Job Security Inquiry including the introduction of effective casual conversion rights in higher education.
“Staff at universities across Australia desperately need job security and to be paid correctly for their work.
“The union and its hard working members won’t stop exposing wage theft and encourage anyone in the sector who believes they have been underpaid to contact us.”
The latest underpayment allegations come after Monash University admitted $8.6 million in underpayments to casual academics in September 2021.
Monash University recorded a consolidated pre-tax operating surplus in 2021 of $416 million.
