University Continues Leave Planning

Friday 10 March 2006

Vice-Chancellor Professor Nick Saunders said today that the 2005 focus on the appropriate use of leave and the reduction of leave accruals had reduced the University's annual leave liabilities by $1.4million.

Initiatives had included encouraging staff to take their annual quota of leave during the year as well as extending the normal university Christmas closure by nine working days.

This week, the University announced it would extend the Christmas closure in 2006 by seven working days.

"The importance and value of staff taking their annual leave each year to refresh, recharge and refocus is acknowledged by both the University and the unions," Professor Saunders said.

He said the University had canvassed staff opinion on the 2005 Christmas closedown and identified suggestions for future closedowns.

A total of 1044 of the University's 2030 staff responded to the 2005 Closedown - Staff Survey.

Professor Saunders said 56% of staff either supported the closedown, or were undecided, while 44% of respondents indicated that they did not believe the closedown was a good thing to do.

"We learned that there were lots of positive outcomes to the closure from both the perspective of staff who got to spend more time with their families, as well as for the University's financial position," Professor Saunders said.

"We also learned that there were a significant number of staff who did not like the closure: they felt it removed the flexibility of University operations and when they could take leave, and that the closure was too long."

"The University has taken on board many of the concerns expressed by staff with the reduction of the closedown period from nine days to seven days. Over the next nine months we will work with staff to ensure that any individual needs and concerns are accommodated," Professor Saunders said.

For further information contact Kate Reid, Public Relations, on (02) 4921 5351.