Adelaide Uni's strategy for growth

Thursday, 9 September 1999

Adelaide University today released a plan for growth which will see its workforce and salaries increase and its income from non-government sources rise substantially.

The University is predicting an 8.7% (compounded) salary increase for staff over the next three years, based on realistic forecasts of revenue increases from fee income, consultancies and research. The pay increase will be even larger if revenue growth exceeds the targets.

A 2% pay rise will be paid as soon as agreement is reached between the University and its staff. Further increases of 3% and 3.5% will be paid in 12-monthly instalments, dependent on meeting revenue targets.

The University's plan includes the employment of talented postgraduate and senior undergraduate students as teaching fellows. These students will gain valuable on-the-job training and improved financial security during their senior years of study.

The plan allows for an investment of nearly $20 million on new staff and related costs to help earn the extra income needed to fund pay rises.

The University today presented its plan to the unions representing staff as part of the latest round of Enterprise Bargaining.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mary O'Kane, says that although base funding of universities by government has fallen, Adelaide University was going to resist the trend of downsizing and restricted horizons. Instead, the University will pursue growth and quality.

"The future of Adelaide University is in the remarkable talents of our staff and the ability of the University as a whole to attract and educate the best students and produce the most innovative research," Professor O'Kane says.

"We have the capacity to attract significant industry support, as was shown recently with the $25 million sponsorship from Santos to establish the Santos School of Petroleum Engineering.

"Obviously, we want our staff to have the best possible wages and conditions. By linking salary increases to revenue increases we will ensure strong growth, without the need for big redundancy programs. Axing large numbers of staff is a corrosive strategy that would only lead to a lowering of quality.

"Our plan will deliver real salary increases and the employment of more staff. I'm very hopeful that the staff and students will support our ideas," she says.

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