• With an expiry date of 30 April 2025, the increases work out to be 3.63%, one of the leading annual increases in the sector. The Bargaining Team was hoping to see more backpay included, unfortunately that was not possible.

• Improved consultation process.
• Staff will not be subject to more than 1 change proposal involving the potential redundancy of their position in any 2-year period, except in exceptional circumstances.
• Redundancy will be an option of last resort.
• ‘Outsourcing’ is included as significant change for change management purposes.

• Conversion of a combined 70 CDFs and STF’s to continuing employment (Academic Agreement).
• Reduction in the qualification period to apply for conversion to continuing employment from 3 years to 2 years.
• Reductions in the number of permissible fixed term employment categories (external funding, secondments, discontinued teaching program and disestablished organisational area have all been abolished).
• Extension on the period of notice the University is required to give for renewal or non-renewal of fixed term contracts from 4 weeks to 8 weeks where the period of engagement has been 12 to 24 months, and 12 weeks where the period of engagement has been over 24 months.
• Abolition of the Scholarly Teaching/Academic Career Development Fellowship program and conversion of approximately 70 FTE of fixed term CDF roles to continuing employment.

• Increased job security for staff employed on externally funded fixed term contracts via conversion to a distinct type of continuing (contingent) employment. An initial externally funded fixed term contract may include a contingency in addition to an end date. A continuing contingent employee’s employment will only be terminable if the external funding ceases and is not renewed (the contingency), or in accordance with Unsatisfactory Performance and Misconduct provisions.

• Improved definition of ‘casual employee’: casual work will be restricted to work that is ‘ad-hoc, irregular and for a short duration’ and that casual employment is required to address circumstances such as fluctuations in academic and business cycle of the University, supplement and enrich the academic workforce with persons with professional and specialist skills and provide opportunities for higher degree students to gain experience in other academic work.
• To address the problem of overreliance on casualised academic labour, there is now an enforceable cap of 15% of all academic employment, which may only be adjusted with NTEU agreement (the current rate is 14.8% FTE).
• Casual staff will be paid by the hour for all work performed except where rolled up rates for tutoring and lecturing apply.
• Payments for marking will be by the hour and will not include tasks associated with the investigation of academic misconduct outside of bringing an allegation to the attention of the responsible Subject Coordinator; tasks associated with the administration of marks or provision of additional feedback outside a reasonable expectation of feedback as defined in the marking formulae.

• The University does not expect or require a staff member to respond to communications outside their ordinary hours of work, or whilst they are on approved leave, including Concessional Days. The University will not make workload demands of staff that are inconsistent with these provisions.

• Creates an appeal mechanism for professional staff to challenge management decisions concerning their workloads including assessment external to the work unit.

• The University is required to address workload and WHS impacts of proposed changes in Change Proposals.
• During the change process, Management will:

(i) assess any increases in workloads;

(ii) make proposals to mitigate the effect of increases to workloads, including the redistribution of remaining work from a position(s) proposed to be disestablished;

(iii) where any work remaining from position(s) proposed to be disestablished cannot be accommodated within the available workload(s) of remaining ongoing and fixed term staff, the position(s) will not be disestablished.

• The Agreements will include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment targets as follows: 3% of continuing/fixed term staff by headcount or 75 FTE (35 Academic and 40 Professional Services staff), whichever is the greater, by 30 June 2026.
• The University will commit to annually fund employee initiatives and remuneration to address cultural load and cultural development and education over the lifetime of the Agreements.
• This commitment will be achieved through development of a policy through consultative processes with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff within the first three months of the commencement of the Agreements.
• Ten days of paid Cultural and Ceremonial Leave.
• The University will have an Aboriginal Workforce Development Committee (AWDC) which will include an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander staff representative nominated by the NTEU.

A continuing or fixed term staff member who is undergoing gender affirming care and/or processes is entitled to the following paid leave entitlements to utilise, as needed, while they remain an employee of the University of Wollongong: 

1. 60 days paid gender affirmation leave is available after 12 months of continuous employment for any purpose related to gender affirmation; and
2. 30 days paid gender affirmation leave is available after 12 months of continuous employment for the purpose of undergoing a surgical procedure relating to gender affirmation.

• An increase to 20 days (from 10 days) of Paid Domestic and Family Violence Leave for all continuing, fixed term and casual staff.