Hundreds of staff and students at the Australian National University (ANU) have rallied in protest against a proposal that will see staff forgo an agreed pay rise.

The university earlier this month announced it needed to make $250 million in savings by the end of 2025 as part of a major restructure which would lead to a “smaller university”. 

To do that, the university is proposing cuts to operational costs, jobs and salaries, including making nearly 50 redundancies by axing the College of Health and Medicine.

The institution has now proposed staff forgo a 2.5 per cent pay rise that was due to take effect in December, arguing it “will save jobs”.

“I know that asking you to forgo a salary increase you were expecting to receive is a significant decision, particularly in the current broader economic context. But I encourage you to think about what this sacrifice could mean for our community.”

The forgoing of the pay increase will only go ahead if it’s agreed to by a majority of staff through a vote, which is due to be held in the coming weeks.

Professor Bell also told staff she would be taking a 10 per cent pay cut, effective immediately, while senior leaders have also been asked to forgo the December pay increase.

“I know this is a big ask, but I hope it is a sacrifice you are prepared to make along with me and our university’s leaders,” she said.

In a statement, the ANU said staff would still receive a 16 per cent pay increase over the course of the current enterprise agreement, which “compares favourably to the 11.2 per cent increase for Australian Public Service employees over the same period”.

The staff voted to defer agreed pay rises in an effort to stop job cuts in 2020, but the ANU ultimately still had to shed hundreds of staff. 

Staff ’emotional’ over cuts

At a rally held at the university’s campus in Canberra, Dale Horne, who works as a research officer at the College of Health and Medicine, said his job was one that had been earmarked to be cut.

He said it was “very emotional”, after working at the ANU for more than three years.

“Not only are we losing our jobs but all of the work we have worked towards for the past couple of years,” he said.

“Everyone is looking for jobs. Everyone has accepted that ANU has abandoned them.”

Rally attended by students and staff

Speakers addressed the crowd of staff and students at the rally, before marching to the ANU Chancelry, where senior executives have their offices.

The rally was organised by the National Tertiary Education Union, and the union’s Lachlan Clohesy said they were calling for the university to back down on its move to have staff forgo the pay rise.

“If they don’t and it goes to a non-union ballot, then we will be mounting a vigorous ‘vote no’ campaign,” he said.

“Our members think pay cuts don’t save jobs, they have seen it before and they don’t think this one will either.”

Dr Clohesy said the union predicts hundreds of jobs will be lost as part of the university’s restructure, while the university said they have not identified the total number of jobs that will be lost.

ANU Students’ Association (ANUSA) President Phoenix O’Neill, who was also at the rally, said it was important for students to support the university’s staff.

“Their teaching conditions are our learning conditions. Job cuts do impact the quality of education that students receive,” they said.

The university has pledged no educational programs will be cut as part of the major cost-saving restructure.

A consultation process about the broader changes has been ongoing, allowing staff to provide feedback on the proposals before final decisions are made.

The final proposal will be announced in November.

Earlier this month, the ANU dropped from 67th position to equal 73rd in the Times Higher Education world university rankings, but is still classed as Australia’s fourth-best university.