Canterbury University staff holding back grades over pay talks

Staff at the University of Canterbury will hold back student grades until December under a partial strike which began today.Members of the Tertiary Education Union have started the partial strike after the university offered staff a two percent pay rise each year for two years, and a one-off payment of $3000.Law professor and member of the union bargaining team Annick Masselot said they had been at the bargaining table since May and had not received an adequate offer.She said staff were marking students' work, but were refusing to enter, process and release grades until 1 December."This university is the one that has offered us the least increase compared to all the other universities," Masselot said."In real terms for us it's a pay cut, but in addition the university wants to claw back our retirement provision, where as none of the other universities has this term on their bargaining table."Masselot said it was a step back in the terms and conditions of employment, and the offer was not in line with the cost of living.She said the students were likely to receive their grades later than usual, "unless the university comes up with an offer, and we would be very delighted to stop the partial strike".Masselot said there had been an "incredible" influx of students at the university in the past few years, and none of the striking staff wanted to cause issues for them."We have provided an excellent experience for students on campus. Everybody wants to come to Canterbury, it is the most dynamic university in the whole of New Zealand."But with the increase of students, there is the increase of work, and of course there are all the resources that should go with it, which the university is not providing, and not valuing."A University of Canterbury spokesperson told Checkpoint the end-of-year examinations ended on Saturday and marking of assessments was currently underway.They said the university recognised and valued the contributions of staff, and it was continuing to negotiate in good faith with union representatives to reach a fair and sustainable outcome.