University of Queensland (UQ) Management has admitted to staff that the institution stole $7.88 million in wages over seven years.
The underpayments affected 9743 staff members between January 2017 and December 2023.
In this case, the wage theft resulted from “the use of a lower pay rate for casual academic staff with a relevant PhD” and a system of “minimum hours of engagement for casual academic and casual professional staff,” according to the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU).
The underpayments were detected as a part of UQ’s review of pay processes and systems.
NTEU Queensland Secretary Michael McNally said “nearly 10,000 of UQ’s lowest-paid staff have lost on average around $800, during a cost-of-living crisis.”
“The scale of the wage theft at UQ is staggering,” McNally said, “the Vice Chancellor has apologised unreservedly, but that won’t compensate the casuals who couldn’t pay their bills.”
A UQ Spokesperson said that “9743 staff will receive a median payment of $243.03, with a total amount of $7.88 million (excluding superannuation and interest) owing over the 7 years.”
The UQ Spokesperson said that “the University’s program of work to further improve systems and processes is ongoing, to ensure our staff are paid promptly and accurately in accordance with the Enterprise Agreement.”
According to the UQ Spokesperson, “actions being taken include the introduction of a whole-of-UQ timesheet system, compulsory training for managers and staff and additional fortnightly payroll reporting.”
UQ Vice Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry said that “the University is committed to paying staff correctly in a timely manner and in accordance with our Enterprise Agreement.”
“I unreservedly apologise to those staff who have been affected by these errors,” Terry said, “our intention is to rectify these matters as soon as possible, and I would like to assure them they will receive all entitlements including superannuation and interest.”
“We are continuing to engage with the Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman on these matters and have advised relevant statutory authorities,” Terry concluded.
McNally claimed that UQ continues to fall back on “computer error” as an excuse for wage theft incidents, rather than acknowledging “the impact of the continual reorganisation and cutting of support and admin staff, who support the university’s key operations.”
“Without major reform through the Universities Accord response, we will see more higher education staff having wages and entitlements stolen,” McNally concluded.
According to the NTEU, in recent years more than 110,000 university staff members across the country have had a cumulative $180 million stolen in the form of unpaid wages.
