Letting down students
May 31st, 2005 at 3:18 pm by David FarrarThe unholy alliance that exists between the leadership of many student associations and staff unions has always baffled me.
We saw this recently in Wellington where they marched to demand lower fees AND higher wages for staff. Hello – have we all failed standard four mathemathics!!!
Now it has got even worse. Staff unions are threatening to withhold students’ first semester marks, unless they get their 10% pay rise.
Any students’ association worth its salt should be out there defending the interest of its (generally compulsory) members and saying that such an action is totally unacceptable, and that such a move would destroy the goodwill to the staff. If the students’ association will not stand up for the interests of students, then who will?
But instead we have the WSU President (2% turnout in their last election) saying they supported the staff doing this!!!!
Let me say that I will be very disappointed if we do not have voluntary membership of students’ associations within 90 days of a National-led Government sworn in. With voluntary membership you would not be able to have the association leadership ignore the interests of their members, as they would lose all their income if they did.
No tag for this post.
May 31st, 2005 at 3:43 pm
Voluntary membership before Christmas. Christmas 2005 to be precise. A brilliant idea. But should I hold my breath?
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 4:20 pm
That would be nice wouldn’t it Berend. The more you delve into student politics the more frustrated and despairing you become that a minority can force others into a particular way of thinking.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 4:25 pm
I’m sorry, why is it that that they obviously do not understand maths. Those two things can quite easily co-exist.
For example, National say tax cuts, and yet no nurses, teachers, etc., lost. They can co-exist, as can lower fees and higher wages.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 4:30 pm
Oh student days Just a fading memory now. I do remember that union fees were the most expensive bit.Those were the days!!!
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 4:36 pm
Carnifex – nice red herring. The Government has a $8b surplus, the universities do not.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 4:45 pm
Well, hippie, they can exist together, assuming Daddy Deeppockets can perpetually increase total funding. BUT they are still conflicting goals. The easiest way for fees to remain the same is if salaries dont go up, and the easiest way for salaries to go up is to increase fees.
Any student union that sides with the staff (socialist fucktards one and all) are demanding one of two things. Either they are demanding total government spending increases OR they are demanding their fees be raised.
They should not be siding with the staff over this because neither the staff nor the student unions themselves control which of the two options will be used. The student unions should only (if they want to remain true to their members) campaign for reduced fees and improved quality.
But then again these are the same dick weed unionists that assume an increase in staff pay will increase quality so what else should we expect?
Fuck the unions, all of them.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 7:11 pm
I think the reasons student unions side with staff now is that then the staff vote down the fee rises when they came up.
However stuff like witholding grades and cancelling lectures isn’t going to win staff support amongst students who fork over thousands of dollars a year in tution fees.
Perhaps a case where your enemy’s enemy is not necessarily your friend.
As for Volutanry Student Unionism you shouldn’t be surprised that I don’t support it. I do think that students should be able to opt out a whole lot easier (eg check a box on your enrolment form to not join).
But as a politico surely you can see the need for aspiring politicans to practice their art on something small before unleashing them on the general unsuspecting public =0P
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 7:56 pm
Stef – not at Vic. If I remember correctly, most if not all academic staff on council voted for fee rises.
If any Vic students are interested in signing a Special General Meeting petition on the issue, email me or check my blog in a day or two.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 8:20 pm
I don’t understand you David.
Of course they can campaign for increased wages and lowered fees. They just need MORE money. They were marching on Parliament, not university.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 8:42 pm
Both sides have a common goal, more government funding of universities. And working together is a far better option than going at each others throats, staff and students do still need to be able to work together.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 10:55 pm
Greg, if both sides do have a common goal (increased Government funding), then working together IS a “far better option”.
Rather poor start to this collaboration then for staff to consider industrial action that will screw students over.
Vote:May 31st, 2005 at 11:01 pm
“Carnifex – nice red herring. The Government has a $8b surplus, the universities do not. That was Farrar’s response to my comment that they are indeed not contradictory desires.
As pointed out by a leter commenter: “They were marching on Parliament, not university.” In this sense, the $8b surplus David talks of is indeed pertinent – given the surplus, the two desires could be achieved easily.
After my comment I was called a ‘hippie’. Now, I would personally consider myself right-wing. Indeed, I think I should have to pay fees to attend the university that I do. The point here is that making up disingenuous claims that suggest Farrar failed not “standard four mathematics” (given there isn’t a test) but indeed failed to understand the current issue, is not helping his cause. Perhaps he should post about why the ‘market rate’ for academics is good, or why fees for degrees are good, instead of churning out some pathetic mantra that only serves to illustrate how he misunderstands the issue.
Vote:June 1st, 2005 at 12:55 pm
Stef – re student association membership: would you support students being able to tick a box on their enrolment form saying that they DO want to join an association?
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