College of Science

Email from Jack Heinemann:

Dear Colleagues

Please make tomorrow’s (Friday, 11 May, 3pm in room S5) AUS meeting on the College of Science Plan a priority. With two large scale reviews underway on campus, this is the time for colleagues to join together and demonstrate strong pan-University support for one another.

The AUS Branch wishes to express its disappointment with the statements attributed to the PVC Science, Prof. Ian Shaw, in today’s edition of the Press. In our view, he is creating an unnecessary level of angst and concern among staff as he continues to imply that the failures of management to achieve their financial aspirations should be paid for by threatening staff jobs. We also found it shocking that Prof. Shaw would use the term “wholesale slaughter” in connection with the dedicated and loyal colleagues that work at the University.

The AUS Branch has been working overtime to effect a proper dialogue with the PVC on this issue, and statements such as these threaten to undermine goodwill and trust. The figures published in the Plan do not justify the PVC frightening staff in this way nor do his self-described actions in deferring some hypothetical action by the VC reflect heroism on his part. The putative College deficit calculates out to only $700,000/year, an amount within the margin of error calculation for a budget of $52M. Even another super computer won’t change our certainty on that.

Friends and colleagues in other colleges, you can access the College of Science Plan from the AUS blog site (http://aus-canterbury.blogspot.com/). There you will find other important announcements, such as news on today’s industrial action at CPIT. Remember your colleagues downtown today as they sacrifice their hard earned wages to make a stand for proper pay and conditions across the tertiary sector.

With warmest regards

Jack Heinemann
Branch President