Damien Cahill

Many anticipated an announcement yesterday.

If this is being held up while millionaires negotiate how many more millions they'll take from a public university, after all this damage to #ANU, that is about as damning an indictment on university governance as you can get. 😡

To Australia’s university fat cats, who may yet face job cuts not of their own making – don’t forget to wash your underwear … It’s been decades since parasitic consultancies began advising our tertiary institutions, at exorbitant cost

Australian universities are a shit show and university managements who listen to corporate consultancy grifters are to blame. My latest in the @theguardian.com.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Gold. “put every university decision-maker responsible for the ongoing, farcical fatcattery in Australian higher education to the figurative sword. It’s in the national interest for the sector to be reformed, and heads to roll”

Workers’ rights = Stronger university governance: the core message from Gary Maas, Victorian MP for Narre Warren South, who met NTEU VIC Asst Sec Prof Joo-Cheong Tham at state parliament this week.
MPs are backing NTEU’s governance campaign - you can too: betterunis.nteu.au
#HigherEducation #auspol

Join NTEU members this Sunday 24 August at marches across the country in solidarity with Palestine.

Find out where it’s happening in your city 👉 nteu.info/24

@nteuact.bsky.social @nteuvictoria.bsky.social

Not even rain, cold and crappy Sydney weather could stop @nteunion.bsky.social members coming together to protest against corporatised uni governance and job cuts today. ✊✊✊💜💜💜☔️☔️☔️

Jason Clare puts unis on notice over governance and VC pay The education minister says the public is losing confidence in the sector as separate analysis shows vice chancellor salaries averaged more than $1 million.

Education Minister Jason Clare tells university heads to ‘lean into’ their $1M+ salaries being cut www.afr.com/politics/fed...

'Regulatory creep' dampening growth, productivity chief warns ahead of talks Government regulation has emerged as one of the key issues to be tackled at the government's economic reform round table this week, as business leaders and the Productivity Commission call for it to b...

Despite four decades of rampant deregulation, the Productivity Commission calls for even more!
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Uni staff told to 'wash delicates' for stress management as 146 courses suspended The University of Technology Sydney is suspending more than 100 courses as it prepares for a controversial redundancy program to save $100 million.

It would defy belief had we not seen similar grossly inappropriate and callous behaviour from other corporatised uni managements: UTS staff told to ‘wash delicates’ to cope with impending job losses. Governance reform now! ⁦‪ @nteunion.bsky.social www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

How one of the world's most prestigious universities fell from grace The prestige of the Australian National University is fast fading. It must now respond to explosive allegations.

“We should expect university councils … to probe and challenge managerial decisions, and be prepared… to listen to reasonable dissent," [Prof. Tregear] told senators

“It is my experience, however, that the university council has repeatedly proved unwilling to do so."

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

An important public institution being trashed. I said a while back that if ANU was a council a State Local Government Minister would have appointed an Administrator by now.

How one of the world's most prestigious universities fell from grace The prestige of the Australian National University is fast fading. It must now respond to explosive allegations.

ANU is the poster child for urgent university reform.
Tragic stories emerging from ANU at the senate inquiry into university governance underline the case for improving the way our universities operate.
Support our campaign: betterunis.nteu.au
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
#HigherEd #auspol

How one of the world's most prestigious universities fell from grace The prestige of the Australian National University is fast fading. It must now respond to explosive allegations.

At ANU: “The lack of transparency has been the foundation of the backlash by staff, who have long accused executives of botched consultation, including claims that executives were deleting staff questions during town hall meetings” www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Thank you, everyone, for your warm well wishes and generous support.

The @nteuact.bsky.social has been especially amazing. And they’re putting on a BBQ*! Come along and grab a bite to eat and spend time with ANU community.

*OMG this is hilarious 😆

'Day of Rage': ANU students blockade the Chancelry as opposition to cuts continues | Region Canberra ANU Students from Save Our Studies voted to blockade the Vice-Chancellor's offices this week as part of their

“ANU Students from Save Our Studies voted to blockade the Vice-Chancellor’s offices this week as part of their “Day of Rage” protest against the university’s ongoing cuts.”

region.com.au/day-of-rage-...

Can AI deliver economic nirvana? Only if workers can monitor and shape how it’s used | Peter Lewis It is only when technology augments human capability that genuine productivity is achieved

“if we want AI to add to national wealth rather than extract wealth for tech rent-seekers and lazy cost-cutters we need to assert democratic control over the technology” @nteunion.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Julie Bishop accused of bullying by ANU staff member, senate inquiry hears Former member of the Australian National University council Liz Allen has used a Senate inquiry investigating university governance to allege Chancellor Julie Bishop harassed, bullied, and threatened ...

Sometimes it takes an act of extraordinary courage to expose and bring down those who rule through fear and intimidation. I hope @nteunion.bsky.social member Liz Allen's brave and harrowing testimony today is the start of such a process - at ANU and other universities.
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

The Productivity Commission has recommended the wrong solution with its suggestion in a newly released report that off-the-shelf lesson plans should be developed for teachers to help them save time and teach outside their area of expertise. Read more: bit.ly/45bYi6A

American corporations are on pace to spend $1.1 trillion on stock buybacks in 2025, an all-time high.

Buybacks don't create more jobs, increase wages, or grow the economy — but they do help juice CEO pay that's often tied to stock performance.

Nothing trickles down to workers.

With NTEU National President Dr Alison Barnes and the @nteunion.bsky.social team at Parliament to give evidence on university governance. ✊️

Will Burfoot has told the Senate that as a council member he is unaware of the role consultancies are playing in Renew ANU. And his requests to see documents produced by Nous Group have been denied.

Clear evidence that council members are being deliberately and systematically kept in the dark.

Coming from a country where schools receive federal money for infrastructure and supplies it was and still is shocking that American teachers have to buy their own supplies. It is not actually normal, and speaks to the deliberate devaluing of education here.

👇Exactly what @nteunion.bsky.social members have been telling us and why we are campaigning for stronger protections against excessive work through enterprise bargaining.

Yes there’s so much to be proud of in the defence of slavery and then losing the war you started over it #losers

Consultancy Korda Mentha touting for more business in higher ed. Governance reform is urgently needed to stop parasitic corporate consultancies sucking the lifeblood out of our public universities. @nteunion.bsky.social

Marching through Macquarie

Ben with Damien

Mehreen Faruqi speaks to rally

Proud to stand with my Sociology colleagues, joined by @mehreenfaruqi.bsky.social @damiencahill.bsky.social and the mighty @nteunion.bsky.social against the devastating cuts proposed at Macquarie University

No Job Cuts at Macquarie Uni! @nteunion.bsky.social ✊✊✊💜💜💜

Strong rally by @nteunion.bsky.social members and students at Macquarie Uni against corporatised uni management’s brutal proposed job cuts. ✊✊✊💜💜💜

Solidarity to Macquarie University friends, colleagues and students rallying against job cuts that damage staff and student wellbeing and the fabric of the university. 12.00 in the central courtyard. Get along if you can!

“In short it would be a hammer blow to independence of research and inquiry. We entirely reject that proposal.”

Read the full statement: nteu.info/envoy