University staff call for a strike vote over low pay

As pay negotiations continue, a strike ballot of Tertiary Education Union (TEU) members at Massey University opens today.  

TEU have tabled claims for a 6% pay increase, and for wages and salaries for the lowest paid members to be no lower than the Living Wage.  

Current employer offers for general pay increases range from 1.5% to 3%. 

Members at The University of Auckland, Massey University, Victoria University, Lincoln University, The University of Canterbury and The University of Otago overwhelmingly expressed their frustration with slow progress in pay negotiations.  
 
National secretary Sandra Grey said university staff had been undervalued for far too long, saying pay growth in the sector has been much slower than the rest of the Aotearoa workforce. 
 
“We’re talking about academic staff, but also about administrators, librarians, security staff, gardeners, and many other professions, some of whom are paid below the living wage. That’s unacceptable.  

“Nobody in Aotearoa, let alone working at a university, should be paid less than what it costs to live.” 
 
If members vote to strike, it will be the biggest show of force in the tertiary education sector since 2022 when 7,000 union members at all eight universities took action.