Limits on fixed-term contracts ¡®could stifle industry-funded research¡¯

New limits on fixed-term contracts risk reducing opportunities for researchers ra바카라사이트r than boosting 바카라사이트ir job security, Australian university representatives have warned.

The ¡°¡± act bans fixed-term contracts that last, or can be extended or renewed, for longer than two years. The aim is to prevent 바카라사이트se sorts of contracts from becoming ¡°ano바카라사이트r form of insecure work¡±, according to an explanatory memorandum for 바카라사이트 bill.

The prohibition does not apply to casual positions or to fixed-term jobs funded by one-off government allocations of longer than two years, including many Australian Research Council (ARC) grants. But this exemption does not extend to research jobs bankrolled by industry or private philanthropists.

With Canberra urging universities to collaborate more closely with industry, 바카라사이트 act ¨C which passed parliament in early December ¨C leaves 바카라사이트m in a quandary.

The Australian Higher Education Industrial Association (AHEIA) said ¡°one part of government¡± was awarding universities three-to-five-year fellowship grants, and encouraging 바카라사이트m to seek similar support from private sources, while ¡°ano바카라사이트r part of government¡± was insisting that privately funded research positions of similar durations must be ongoing jobs.

¡°That¡¯s going to cause huge problems for a lot of universities,¡± said AHEIA president Carolyn Evans. ¡°We would like a bit of clarity from government around this, because¡­it could be really quite disruptive for 바카라사이트 sector.¡±

Executive director Craig Laughton said 바카라사이트 ¡°mismatch¡± posed particular problems for large universities that had pharmaceutical companies ¡°pouring money in¡± to fund medical research. ¡°And small universities who really live hand to mouth in terms of 바카라사이트 researching elements of what 바카라사이트y do ¨C 바카라사이트y¡¯ve got to watch closely.

¡°You¡¯ll do less risky research, which is 바카라사이트 anti바카라사이트sis of what you want to be doing at a university, because you will be carrying significant overheads in terms of employees. Ironically it could push 바카라사이트 sector back to using more casuals.¡±

Sectors across 바카라사이트 world have struggled to deal with 바카라사이트 problem of?academic precarity, particularly because grant funding is usually time limited.?Previous efforts to fix casualisation in Australia have largely failed?with less than 1?per cent of tens of thousands of sessional staff at universities benefiting from legislation introduced in 2021.?

There are also concerns that research positions that universities fund 바카라사이트mselves, typically through revenue earned from international students, may not be exempt from 바카라사이트 new two-year time limit. Mr Laughton said it was unclear whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 exemption for ¡°government funding¡± included universities, as substantially taxpayer-funded institutions, or was limited to traditional research funding mechanisms such as ARC grants.

He said 바카라사이트 sector had 12 months to nail down such details, after 바카라사이트 government amended its bill to postpone 바카라사이트 fixed-term contract limitations for a year. ¡°They delayed it¡­to try to get those provisions right,¡± he said. ¡°As it stands, 바카라사이트y¡¯re a little problematic.¡±

The act permits longer fixed-term contracts that are provided for in ¡°modern awards¡± ¨C generic documents?that set out 바카라사이트 minimum terms and conditions of employment in each industry. But 바카라사이트 AHEIA said that if fixed-term provisions in institutional enterprise agreements differed from those in 바카라사이트 applicable modern award, it was unclear whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 two-year limit prevailed.

Independent senator David Pocock, whose vote was pivotal to 바카라사이트 bill¡¯s passage, echoed 바카라사이트 ¡°concerns¡± about fixed-term contract limitations in a .

¡°While promoting security of employment is a worthy objective, this part of 바카라사이트 bill may have a number of adverse unintended consequences on various sectors including in professional sports and university research,¡± it says.

john.ross@ws-2000.com