Federation University staff have expressed concerns and has demanded answers over another proposed “reshape” that could affect 10 percent of courses with voluntary redundancies already being requested by management.
In June, the university published a report on a “Course and Unit Viability Review,” which proposes a new set of changes to “streamline” the academic structure across its campuses, including Berwick.
Management has cited ongoing efforts to bring its budget into surplus for the proposal.
Following from a workplace struggle last year after the university’s “Future Fed” program that proposed a cut of 200 jobs in mostly admin staff, this now targets academic staff with the possibility of 16.5 full-time equivalent (FTE) roles being cut.
The Federation University branch of the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) passed a motion last week calling for the university to clarify the need for the level of staff cuts and resolved to campaign against any “sham” redundancies and “endless” restructures.
“We note the ongoing severe negative impact on staff wellbeing of the environment of fear and uncertainty created by constant restructuring and the need for certainty and organisational stability so staff can carry out their work to a high standard, serving our students, regions, and communities,” the motion read.
“We also note the context of mismanagement and budgetary austerity that has contributed to declines in student numbers at FedUni.”
The report says there is a concentrated demand from their students, with 80 per cent enrolled in just 20 percent of courses in 2023 to 2024.
The “reshape” could cut, review and “optimise” 10 percent of courses with Information Technology, Engineering and Teaching the most affected.
The report said the ongoing changes are a response to declining enrolments, particularly international students whose numbers have been capped by the federal government, resulting in a “dramatic decline.”
International student numbers were down 75 percent in 2025 compared to 2019, the report said.
With both international and domestic students in mind, the report says allowable enrolments will peak in 2026.
Last year’s restructure saved $40 million for the university who argued at the time that it would help bring about a surplus in 2026.
Much of the academic staff are sessional or part-time workers, it’s not known yet the precise number of redundancies proposed to reach the 16.5 FTE.
To the concern of the NTEU, this proposed cut is part of a broader objective to save $10 million in costs, equivalent to 42 FTE.
The university says the rest of the savings will be delivered through “business as usual” such as “recruitment controls” and “transition to retirements.”
Four courses are proposed to be ceased, including Bachelor of IT and Bachelor of Civil Engineering at the Gippsland Campus.
Six courses could cease intake but be subject to review, including Master of Specialist Teaching and Master of Engineering Project Management.
Five courses, including Bachelor of Science and IT Masters, could continue while being subject to “optimisation,” which can involve streamlining course structure and reducing units.
These proposals are made by the university due to enrolments not meeting thresholds for their financial viability, the report said 50 per cent of units had fewer than 10 students in the first half of this year.
The primary funding from domestic allocations has a current growth of 2.5 per cent per annum, while staff costs have a growth of 5 per cent per annum, according to the report.
The NTEU branch also seeks clarification on whether the university’s acquisition of a new Melbourne Campus on Bourke Street this year has had an impact on these proposals.
The motion called for addressing “profound workload problems” that could worsen with the proposal and to “stop silencing staff,” after the union claims workers are not given speaking rights during forums with management.
Two phases are proposed for this restructure, with phase 1 underway involving the expression of interest for voluntary redundancies by staff.
Phase 1 started on June 19 and will end on 6 July, the outcome of this phase will be determined in late July.
If the outcome is insufficient to meet the proposed level of 16.5 FTE, “non-voluntary redundancies” will be considered.
The NTEU branch resolved to “consider” campaign tactics, such as rallies, in late July or early August.
