Latest news with #TePouAhurei
Scoop
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Budget 2025 – A Fiscal Hole Filled By Taking From The Most Vulnerable
Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union warns that this year's budget doesn't contain enough new money to keep the lights on. Te Pou Ahurei | National Secretary Sandra Grey says 'the funding commitments made, even in the STEM subjects and those described by the ministers as 'workforce demand areas', fail to cover rising costs in the sector.' 'The shortfall of new money will be met by job cuts, increased student fees, and propping up the system by hoping more international students will come.' 'This is another example of a government that has created a fiscal hole, filling it by taking from the most vulnerable. They have done it to Māori by cancelling Whānau Ora contracts, they have done it to women by cancelling pay equity and now they are doing it to young people by making education unaffordable, and defunding subjects like arts and the humanities.' 'Instead of showing leadership by investing money in our future workforce, they would rather give tax breaks to landlords and tobacco companies.' Craig Marshall, an Associate Professor in the School of Biomedical Sciences at Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka | The University of Otago, says 'it's regrettable that this should have happened and it illustrates a failure to understand what a proper education system is.' 'For funding on STEM to almost match inflation is beneficial but most universities would be looking at ways of ensuring that their humanities programes remain viable. If you don't know the value of what people want and how they intend to use it then the thing has little value. Humanities tell us about the way people think, which is something we also need to know.'
Scoop
21-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Weltec And Whitireia Cuts A Shocking Blow For Their Communities
Press Release – Tertiary Education Union These short-sighted moves rob future generations of study options, our future workforce of skilled workers and our future communities and regional economies of people who can build our infrastructure, cook for and entertain us and our future tourists, … Staff at Weltec and Whitireia have been left reeling by a change proposal, announced today, that if confirmed will see nearly 60 positions disestablished. This number represents over one in five academic staff members. Programmes facing the axe include Mechanical Engineering, Engineering Fabrication, Light Automotive Engineering, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Writing, Publishing, Cookery, Baking and Hospitality. In addition there are 6 full time equivalent roles proposed to go in the libraries and Māori carving and weaving programmes are under threat. Also of great concern it the loss of programmes that provide Skills for Learning and Working for students with disabilities. Te Pou Ahurei | National Secretary Sandra Grey says 'this proposal is an enormous blow to the young people, the community and the people of the Wellington region. These short-sighted moves, carried out at the behest of Penny Simmonds and her government, rob future generations of study options, our future workforce of skilled workers and our future communities and regional economies of people who can build our infrastructure, cook for and entertain us and our future tourists, and tell our stories to the world. Helen Johnston, TEU Branch President at Whitireia says 'I feel for our community – Whitireia is the lifeblood of the region and it's our young people, our students, who are ultimately hurt the most at times like this. I worry about those who may miss out on the future they deserve and I worry for the quality of their education that will be delivered by the depleted stadd who will remain. Leo Pirini, Te Uepu Representitive at Weltec says 'I'm shocked. This is a big blow and my heart goes out to my colleagues who are impacted by this – they are all great people and talented educators. Some of them have been very long serving and loyal to their students and their institution. It's heartbreaking.'
Scoop
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Weltec And Whitireia Cuts A Shocking Blow For Their Communities
Staff at Weltec and Whitireia have been left reeling by a change proposal, announced today, that if confirmed will see nearly 60 positions disestablished. This number represents over one in five academic staff members. Programmes facing the axe include Mechanical Engineering, Engineering Fabrication, Light Automotive Engineering, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Writing, Publishing, Cookery, Baking and Hospitality. In addition there are 6 full time equivalent roles proposed to go in the libraries and Māori carving and weaving programmes are under threat. Also of great concern it the loss of programmes that provide Skills for Learning and Working for students with disabilities. Te Pou Ahurei | National Secretary Sandra Grey says 'this proposal is an enormous blow to the young people, the community and the people of the Wellington region. These short-sighted moves, carried out at the behest of Penny Simmonds and her government, rob future generations of study options, our future workforce of skilled workers and our future communities and regional economies of people who can build our infrastructure, cook for and entertain us and our future tourists, and tell our stories to the world. Helen Johnston, TEU Branch President at Whitireia says 'I feel for our community – Whitireia is the lifeblood of the region and it's our young people, our students, who are ultimately hurt the most at times like this. I worry about those who may miss out on the future they deserve and I worry for the quality of their education that will be delivered by the depleted stadd who will remain. Leo Pirini, Te Uepu Representitive at Weltec says 'I'm shocked. This is a big blow and my heart goes out to my colleagues who are impacted by this – they are all great people and talented educators. Some of them have been very long serving and loyal to their students and their institution. It's heartbreaking.'
Scoop
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
New Bill Gives Minister Power To Keep Making It Up As She Goes
Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union notes yet another development in the ongoing saga of Aotearoa's vocational education and training network that contributes nothing to stability or certainty to staff or students in the sector. The Education and Training (Vocational Education and Training System) Amendment Bill was introduced into Parliament yesterday and anyone who was hoping it would provide new information on how the new system would be structured was left disappointed. Te Pou Ahurei | National Secretary Sandra Grey sees no plan 'apart from giving the Minister the power to keep making up the plan as she goes along. There's still no indication of which polytechnics will stand alone, which will merge and which will be federated – the bill says all of that will be at the discretion of the Minister.' 'This legislation contributes nothing to the financial 'viability' of or the quality of education within the system or any individual or federated providers. It provides no certainty to our members, who still have jobs in depleted and neglected institutions, and have been scared of losing their jobs for longer than they can remember.' 'Once again Penny Simmonds continues the long tradition of successive governments rearranging the deckchairs and changing some names without addressing the underlying problem.' 'For the umpteenth time – our sector doesn't have a structural problem, it has a funding problem.'
Scoop
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Brooke Van Velden's Mother's Day Present Sets Gender Equity Back 53 Years
Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union condemns today's move by the National-led government to gut the Equal Pay Act. The proposed changes will halt all current pay equity claims, cause them to be restarted under very restrictive and unreasonable criteria, and waste years of work by employers and unions who in many cases have been working together to seek justice for some of Aotearoa's lowest paid workers – all without due parliamentary process. Te Pou Ahurei | National Secretary Sandra Grey says 'this is discrimination at its worst and will set gender equity back 53 years to when the Equal Pay Act was passed.' 'Countless union women have fought long and hard for many years to achieve equal rights and equal pay for work of equal value in the workplace and this government is making a mockery of all that mahi.' 'This is another shameful example of workers paying the price for unnecessary tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the already well off. This time it comes at the particular expense of women being paid fairly, and it clearly demonstrates this government's lack of respect both for justice and for women.' 'Brooke Van Velden has delivered the worst possible Mother's Day present for working women – legislation that takes them and their families backwards.' Wellingtonians outraged by this move are welcome to join us for a protest at the intersection of Cobham Drive and Evans Bay Parade at 9am on 23 May. All welcome! TEU currently has two live pay equity claims for administrators and library assistants in universities. Including our two for university clerical/admin and library assistant, service workers.
