Students And Staff at Australian University Experiencing Massive Layoffs

Australia can be regarded as an international educational hub as people belonging to different countries come here to accomplish their dream courses. The education sector in Australia was flourishing significantly before the wave of Covid 19 has shaken the whole world. The health sectors of all of the countries are facing some difficult situations due to the pandemic situation. The business industries have also been shaken due to the pandemic.

However, the impact of the pandemic on the education sector is also considerable. In Australia, several workers are facing layoffs due to the pandemic situation. The university management in Australia has stated that they have faced more than hundreds of job losses over the past 14 days. It is genuinely a considerable matter as it can affect the country’s overall economic situation. In the following section, a detailed discussion regarding the problem is going to be elaborated.

The impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on the Australian Education Sector

It has already been stated that academic workers face severe layoffs due to the pandemic situation in Australia. To ensure economic stability, all of the workers face the requirement to keep their job, which is why they face the requirement to compete with each other. They face the requirement to prove that they are working better than their peers to retain the job.

In this regard, it is essential to state that the federal government has already launched a new drive to develop a relationship between universities funding the research commercialization. The education minister has highlighted the need for academic professionals to become entrepreneurs. By considering the education industry’s overall situation and the problems that academics face, this kind of statement has been provided. By considering statistical analysis, it has been possible to understand that more than 17,000 people have lost their jobs at Australian Universities since the pandemic has hit the country.

By considering the number of people who have lost the jobs due to the pandemic situation, it can be stated that it is 13% of the pre-covid workforce in Australia. By considering this matter and considering the overall situation, the Chief executives of Universities of Australia have stated that more job losses are probable in this regard. It means that the situation can become more pathetic for people associated with Australian universities.

In this regard, if anyone thinks that permanent staff does not have chances to lose their jobs, it would be a mistake. It is essential to state that more than 17000 people have lost their job due to the pandemic situation, and they are not only casual employees but also the permanent staff.  The president of NTEU, Dr. Alison Barnes, has stated that the losses’ scale is genuinely shocking and is enough to cause harm to the future generation in Australia.  The rate of job losses is getting severe in a regular manner.

Last week, a hunger game style was adopted by Macquarie University. In this regard, they have been found following the “Spill and Fill” process. This process has already been used in the University of Sydney and the University of Queensland. In this regard, the university’s management team has released a change proposal, and its aim was nothing other than eliminating 90 full-time positions.

Through this kind of proposal, a competitive environment has been created, and employees have faced the requirement to compete to ensure their survival. The business school is targeting an adequate number of full time positions (17 to 27). In the following section, a discussion regarding the reasons behind such job losses will be highlighted.

Reasons behind the job losses of the Education sector in Australia

In 2020, the number of job losses was 17300. It has been expected that the number of job losses would reach 21,000 within April 2021. This figure has been provided by considering the number of job losses of full-time employees and casual employees. The main reason behind this kind of job loss is nothing other than the revenue generation-related issue faced by the educational sector in Australia. It has been found that the operating revenue of universities has been fallen by 4.9 percent. Hence, it is truly tough for them to retain all employees as they have to pay them a significant amount as their salary.

In other words, it can be stated that in comparison to the revenue that universities generated in 2019, the revenue that they obtained in 2020 is $1.8 billion lower. It has been predicted that the revenue would fall by $2 billion this year. In such a situation, retaining all workers is tough, and it can be regarded as a significant reason why universities face the requirement to cut the number of employees. However, this kind of situation affects the lives of people associated with the education sector, and a discussion regarding it will be elaborated in the following section.

Problems that these people are facing due to layoffs

The situation has affected the overall well-being of the people who have lost their jobs and who have chances to lose their jobs in the future. In this regard, it is essential to state that their livelihoods are being destroyed due to such a situation. Their basic life-related requirements have also been affected. Students are facing the impact of such situations. They are facing larger class sizes, and they are also facing issues in regard to the quality of classes.

In order to deal with the pandemic situation, the universities are facing the requirement to be transformed into a business entity, and they are serving the commercial and strategic demands of the financial elite. However, it is expected that the Australian education sector would be successful in dealing with the issues and would be able to get back to its stable position as soon as possible.