We, the Students’ Representative Council (SRC) Disabilities Collective and Sydney University Postgraduate Students’ Association (SUPRA) Disability & Inclusion Network, condemn the University of Sydney and School of Psychology for terminating Dr Niko Tiliopoulos’ employment on the basis of his disability and ill health.
Dr Niko Tiliopoulos has been working at Sydney University for more than 16 years. If Dr Tiliopulous contracts COVID-19, the condition represents an extreme risk for his health. For more than three years, he has been successfully teaching remotely due to his conditions.
A University spokesperson told Honi Soit that Dr Niko’s circumstances do not fall within its disability accommodations.
“Unfortunately, in some cases it is not possible for an employee with a disability to perform the inherent requirements of their position.”
We at the SRC and SUPRA say that this is a disgraceful and shameful statement. It is blatantly discriminatory. The University is effectively offering either death or loss of employment to a longstanding, beloved member of our university community.
Many other universities deliver rigorous and high-quality online education, some with decades in the trade, think the University of New England with its flagship distance education programs. This includes the University of Sydney itself with a for-profit $13,700 coding bootcamp delivered entirely online and an entire suite of premium online-only postgraduate degrees released this year.
It is hypocrisy of the highest order.
How can the University claim that it cannot accommodate Dr Niko’s conditions being a matter of life and death when it offers online-only and partially online degrees?
Staff with disabilities do not deserve to be treated this way. Dr Niko does not deserve to be treated this way.
The University of Sydney says that it is committed to the Disabilities Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) which is required by state law. However, the termination of Dr Niko’s contract betrays the very spirit that drives DIAP.
We stand in solidarity with Dr Niko Tiliopoulos and wholeheartedly support the National Tertiary Education Union’s (NTEU) campaign and petition demanding the University of Sydney to reverse its decision and allow Dr Niko to continue teaching remotely immediately.
In solidarity,
Khanh Tran, Gemma Lucy Smart and Jacklyn Scanlan