If you don’t care about the cuts you already aren’t reading this page. That’s not who this is for. This page is for people who care about the cuts who are friends with people who don’t care about the cuts - for whatever reason. Maybe their privilege shields them from concern. Maybe they don’t actually want to be at uni. Maybe they just don’t get it yet. Maybe they’re just an asshole. No matter the reason, here are some stories to arm yourself with when this comes up in debate. It shouldn’t be something you let them gloss over. Very rarely do we have the opportunity to really be pissed off about something and know that we’re completely correct in our indignation; this is one of those times.
Brandon Johnstone, TEU Otago Co-Branch President
In April of this year, the leadership of the University of Otago announced that they would be opening a “voluntary redundancy” process. In short, VR is the university senior management saying “we’ll pay you to end your employment”. University of Otago HR has been pretty clear that this VR process is born of financial desperation, and is not “scientific” in any manner.
There’s a bit of a reactionary impulse to point the finger at staff taking up voluntary redundancy, as if those people leaving are the reason for downsizing (or disestablishing) departments. This is not fair, nor is it rational or even correct. When management says “our ship is sinking”, people will inevitably be running for the lifeboats, because the alternative may be forcibly walking the plank. But, critically, the University controls those lifeboats.
Senior leadership at the University approves or denies every application for voluntary redundancy. Every one of those 100+ accepted voluntary redundancies exists because the university leadership asked for them, and approved them.
University senior leadership would love it if you incorrectly pointed the blame at staff trying to ensure that their career has a future. They don’t deserve this get-out-of-jail-free card. Those senior managers are overseeing cuts to staff, papers, and department, and the accountability should be placed squarely upon them.
Another critical point for workers at the University of Otago is the difference between voluntary and non-voluntary redundancy. If a worker is made redundant against their will, the employer must demonstrate that their workload no longer exists. There is no such requirement in the voluntary redundancy process. This creates a risk of growing workloads and the unhealthy workplaces that come with them.
If you see such unsustainable practices unfolding, do reach out to us at dunedin@teu.ac.nz or suggest that the staff around you do so. And never let senior management and the government off the hook. Remember, staff and students are in this together. Tū kotahi, tū kaha.
Flynn Acworth - Te Ao o Rongomaraeroa - The Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies
My name is Flynn, and I’m a postgraduate student at Te Ao o Rongomaraeroa. My research focus is on the intersection between cybersecurity studies and peace and conflict research. I was hoping to pursue my PhD in this topic at Otago starting in 2024, but the proposed changes to the centre (tabled because of the financial crisis) have thrown those plans to the wind.
The proposal to ‘align the centre’s costs with its income’ suggests cutting it down to one staff member, who will teach the Master’s course, run the centre, as well as supervise all postgraduate research. This will rob the centre of its doctoral supervisory capacity, essentially killing the PhD program. This is a big deal. The centre is currently the only place in Aotearoa where a PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies can be pursued. The proposed change doesn’t only affect current students and staff - it impacts the entire country.
I’m writing this on the 4th of August, and somewhat prophetically, our government has just published its inaugural national security strategy. It paints a rather bleak picture of our potential future. While reading through it I kept asking myself: in a time where our government assesses that strategic competition and contestation is increasing, and that “pressure is likely to grow for countries like New Zealand, whose security and prosperity depend on a cooperative landscape” why the hell are we throttling our national capacity to train the very researchers that might help us address these concerns?
The value of Te Ao o Rongomaraeroa can’t be calculated by a cost/income analysis. It is a national resource that only increases in value as our peaceful future is becoming increasingly uncertain. I believe that in our current global landscape, the proposals to change the centre are not just harmful, they are dangerous, and we need to do something about it.
Anon (SciCom)
Ten months ago I celebrated receiving an offer of place for my dream Master’s program with a glass of wine next to my mum and dad in our family home in Massachusetts. We clinked glasses and smiled at each other, proud of the hard work that went into that moment.
Even though this program required moving 9,467 miles away from home, I’d have the opportunity to learn from world-renowned science communicators, collaborate with a network of talented peers, and gain hands-on experience in the field. And even though my mother was still receiving her breast cancer treatments, it felt too important of an opportunity to pass up. I accepted my offer and never looked back.
That is until I found out that I would be a member of my program’s final cohort of Master’s students. I never thought that my Science Communication degree would cover management of change processes, voluntary redundancies, and education unions; yet I’ve spent more time in Semester 2 on these topics than science communication theory or application.
These cuts have consumed every spare moment and all of my mental capacity. I’ve mobilized my classmates, written demands letters, and negotiated assignment deadlines. I’ve cried in the Pro-Vice Chancellor’s office, in an attempt to make him understand the psychological impact this has had on me and my classmates. I’ve navigated this all, in addition to my coursework, as I’ve grappled with my grandmother’s death and my father’s dementia diagnosis.
It’s been an utterly unsupported and overwhelming shit show that I wouldn’t wish upon any other student, let alone my 25 friends and classmates who are experiencing the same exact thing. We’ve already had one member of our cohort drop out and move back home to the US.
How many more will decide they’ve had enough and pack up? Sometimes it feels like this is what the Uni would like to see happen, anyway.
Jamie Baldwin – Geology
The Geology Department is home to many fantastic researchers, lecturers, students, and technicians. It is home to the most extensive fossil collection in Aotearoa, world class research facilities, and me – one of many final-year undergrads. I am proud to call myself a geologist from the University of Otago, but that clearly doesn't mean anything to the University. I wouldn’t be the person or the scientist that I am today without the support of the Geology staff and students – we are a small yet tight-knit community, and I have not found a more welcoming and supportive place than Geology.
The announcement of the cuts formed a dark cloud over us that quickly settled into worry for the future. As Fox (ex-Geology student) said in Critic, we stand to lose 30% of our department, and it is depressing to watch what the staff are calling the “hunger games” for their jobs. Ironically, the University has criticized our lack of support staff and lecturers (especially for paleontology) in their proposal yet continues to cull our already understaffed department until we are ground down into the very sediment we study.
Our world-class paleontology research program is almost completely gone, and it is a beloved aspect of the Geology Department sorely missed by both students and staff alike. The University froze the hire themselves despite an outpouring of support for the role from hundreds of students, researchers, and enthusiasts – that’s a real twist of the knife in the cuts, and it shows how little the University cares about the quality of our education. The loss of our support staff has also been devastating for the whole department, and the loss of lab managers for our geochemistry labs is felt at every turn. The fountain of knowledge that kept our labs operational has run dry, and research stalls for weeks at a time.
It’s funny to think that in a world where understanding the ground beneath our feet is becoming more significant, the University has decided that geoscientists are the first to go extinct instead of preserving the mahi and integrity of their oldest department. Go figure.