Tertiary Education Union

The New Zealand Tertiary Education Union (in Māori: Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa) is the main trade union in the New Zealand tertiary education sector, and represents the interests of more than 10,000 workers employed within the sector across New Zealand. Its membership includes academics, researchers, teachers and workers employed in all occupations in universities, polytechnics, institutes of technology, wānanga, other tertiary education providers and allied organisations.

For the similarly named Australian union, see National Tertiary Education Union.
Tertiary Education Union
Full nameNew Zealand Tertiary Education Union
Native nameTe Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa
Founded2009
AffiliationNZCTU
Key peopleSharn Riggs, national secretary
Sandra Grey, national president
Office locationWellington, New Zealand
CountryNew Zealand
Websiteteu.ac.nz

History
TEU flags at a rally in 2011

Founded in 2009, the TEU was established a result of the amalgamation of the Association of University Staff of New Zealand (AUS) and the Association of Staff in Tertiary Education (ASTE).[1] The Tertiary Institutions Allied Staff Association (TIASA) voted not to amalgamate[2] and remain independent.[3]

TEU is a registered trade union in accordance with the Employment Relations Act 2000.[4] The TEU is a democratic union with strong membership participation and is governed by an elected council. Policy is determined by an annual conference and implemented by a number of committees.

Campaigns
MP Peter Dunne speaking at a TEU-organised Parental leave event.

As well as negotiating typical labour rights and employment issues with employers (salary levels, hours of work, etc) the TEU has been involved in a number of national campaigns.[5]

The Union have actively supported longer statutory paid parental leave, including the recent Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Six Months’ Paid Leave and Work Contact Hours) Amendment Bill which provides six months paid parental leave and guaranteed right to return to work afterwards.[6][7][8] The bill is currently stalled in parliament.[9]

Academic Freedom

The Union have campaigned for academic freedom, running an essay competition in cooperation with Academic Freedom Aotearoa.[10][11] and giving out awards, including to Mike Joy an academic at Massey University who had a high profile clash with Prime Minister John Key.[12][13][14]

Living Wage

Under the Employment Relations Act 2000 there are limits on what actions a union can take in support of employment relations involving employees other than union members, but the TEU supports the Living Wage Movement Aotearoa NZ which campaigns to raise the legal minimum wage.[15][16] A number of the TEU's members are paid the current legal minimum wage.[17]

Membership

The Union is present in most tertiary education institutions representing academic, purely teaching, purely research and general staff.[18]

The Union is the members' official representative in employment matters when dealing with their employers (directly or indirectly), many union members (particularly academics and researchers) are also members of the Royal Society of New Zealand (commonly via constituent bodies) as it is the peak professional body in the humanities and the sciences and has legislated roles in science and research funding.

Membership by institution
Institution Type Membership Total Staff General Members Academic Members Notable office-holders and life members
Aoraki PolytechnicITP97 479 0 97
Bay of Plenty PolytechnicITP25 177 0 25
Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of TechnologyITP143 1057 0 143
Eastern Institute of TechnologyITP133 352 0 133
Manukau Institute of TechnologyITPNo Available Data
Nelson Marlborough Institute of TechnologyITP73 222 0 73
NorthTecITP126 230 0 126
Otago PolytechnicITP282 616 0 282
Southern Institute of TechnologyITPNo Available Data
Tai Poutini PolytechnicITP50 95 0 50
The Open Polytechnic of New ZealandITP80 119 0 80
Unitec New ZealandITP238 543 0 238
Universal College of LearningITP204 463 0 204
Waiariki Institute of TechnologyITP131 239 0 131
Waikato Institute of TechnologyITP128 338 0 128
Wellington Institute of TechnologyITP139 247 0 139
Western Institute of Technology at TaranakiITP88 116 0 88
Whitireia NZITP118 257 0 118
University of AucklandUniversity1297 3688 473 824
Auckland University of TechnologyUniversity744 2642 62 682
University of CanterburyUniversity834 1644 435 577Jack Heinemann
Lincoln UniversityUniversity281 574 136 145Malcolm Burns, George Hill
Massey UniversityUniversityNo Available Data
University of OtagoUniversity508 1564 0 508
Victoria University of WellingtonUniversity775 1701 281 494Mere Broughton, Stephen Blumenfeld, David Weatherburn
University of WaikatoUniversity521 1383 169 352Andrea Haines Te Huirangi Waikerepuru
Te Whare Wānanga o AwanuiārangiWānangaNo Available Data
Te Wānanga o AotearoaWānangaNo Available Data
All data from the 2014 TEU Annual Report [19]

International

Through membership of Education International, TEU is linked to international education groups worldwide, and a wide range of education unions and through membership of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, TEU works with other unions to improve the position of all New Zealand workers.

New Zealand Tertiary Education Union
  • Sharn Riggs, National Secretary of the TEU
  • TEU Branch presidents in April 2014
  • Dr Huirangi Waikerepuru, elder of the TEU
  • Dr Tom Ryan and Grant Robertson, MP

References
  1. Education staff to vote on tertiary union The Press Sep 10, 2007. A postal ballot has been sent to members of the Association of University Staff (AUS), the Association of Staff in Tertiary Education (ASTE) and the Tertiary Institutions Allied Staff Association (TIASA) to decide whether or not to amalgamate.
  2. "Staff veto tertiary super union". Stuff.co.nz. 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  3. "Tertiary Institutes Allied Staff Association. Home Page". TIASA. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  4. "Register of unions - Societies and Trusts".
  5. "Tertiary Education Union – Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa". teu.ac.nz.
  6. https://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-nz/50SCGA_ADV_00DBHOH_BILL11276_1_A351979/96660d30d89c258073fa395c12666b20e03bd103
  7. http://teu.ac.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Fact-sheet-on-the-Parental-Leave-and-Employment-Protection-Six-Months-Paid-Leave-and-Work-Contact-Hours-Amendment-Bill.pdf
  8. "Parental Leave – TEU". Teu.ac.nz. 2011-09-26. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  9. "Politicking stalls paid parental leave bill – TEU". Teu.ac.nz. 2014-06-26. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  10. "The Dr Clara Immerwahr essay competition - Academic Freedom Aotearoa". Web.archive.org. 2016-02-06. Archived from the original on 2016-02-06. Retrieved 2016-09-14.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. "The Year of Conscience – TEU". Teu.ac.nz. 2015-02-27. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  12. Lucy Townend (2013-11-12). "Massey ecologist wins academic freedom award". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  13. "Scientist Mike Joy ruffles dairying feathers again". Stuff.co.nz. 2015-05-15. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  14. "Dr. Mike Joy clears the air over water contamination comments - The Country - The Country News". Nzherald.co.nz. 2016-08-26. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  15. "Living Wage – TEU". Teu.ac.nz. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  16. "Sandra Grey (@GreyNZ)". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  17. "Victoria rejects living wage – TEU". Teu.ac.nz. 2014-08-14. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  18. 2014 Annual report, https://issuu.com/nzteu/docs/teu_annual_report_2014
  19. "TEU Annual Report 2014". Issuu. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
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