Higher Education

University report a sham says Union

By David Carey
Federal Secretary (SPSF Group) - CPSU Joint National Secretary

The CPSU-SPSF, has called on the Government to publicly release the " Crossroads" Higher Education report.

The union, like others in the industry, is waiting for the Government's long heralded report on "reform" to the higher education sector.

Joint National Secretary of the CPSU-SPSF, Mr David Carey said "the Department of Education Science and Training (DEST) has been told through the last year, by both University management, academics, students and unions, that policies of funding cutbacks and decentralisation had failed.

'Yet we hear through the media, the Minister, Brendan Nelson has taken no proposals for a funding increase to Cabinet. The Crossroads Review has been a sham"

The union believes that the "Reference Group" process, supposed to gather the views of those stakeholders in the Higher Education, was merely an exercise in finding another way to repackage failed government policy and to reduce public funding in the sector.

If true, the media reports reconfirm the union submissions to the Government that government policy has caused greater inequity in the system, was unfair and increased stress levels on workers.

The Union said its views were also borne out in the recently released Productivity Commission Report. The Productivity Commission said that Australia invests less on education than other leading international developed countries.

"All experts in the industry say the Higher Education Sector needs at least $ 1.5 billion of Federal Government funds, to be injected now to bring funding to 1996 levels. That is now, not in five years time," said Mr Carey.

"We call on the Government to increase expenditure on the Higher Education sector to relieve the stress on staff, students and their families," he said.

© 2001 Community & Public Sector Union - State Public Services Federation (CPSU-SPSF) - National Office

http://www.cpsu-spsf.asn.au/latest_news/higher_ed/20030226_univerity.html
Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005