Listen
Massey University's Palmerston North campus. Photo: RNZ / Jimmy Ellingham
Cash-strapped Massey University is asking staff to catch and dispose of rats and mice in its buildings as it continues to slash the number of non-academic workers.
RNZ understands the directive has not gone down well.
It comes as the university pushes ahead with a proposal to get rid of 37 non-academic positions, on top of restructures last year to facilities management workers, such as groundspeople, and administration and finance positions.
The university recently sent an email to staff saying outside bait stations on its three campuses, in Palmerston North, Wellington and Albany in Auckland, were generally cleared and reset on six-month cycles, but the service did not extend indoors.
"Traps inside the buildings are the responsibility of the building occupants and Estates Management can supply peanut butter/traps for use indoors," the staff email said.
"Should you see any dead vermin in a trap, please bag and dispose of the trap into an appropriate rubbish bin.
"Please note: The ad hoc disposal of vermin is a departmental responsibility."
The email went on to "strongly encourage" staff and students to limit food and food scraps in working and teaching spaces to keep pests away.
On Tuesday, the university confirmed plans to stick with its latest proposal to disestablish 178 administration and finance jobs, replacing them with 141 new roles, leading to the loss of 37 positions.
This is the second phase of restructures for such workers, after the first phase last year.
Other universities, such as Victoria and Otago, are also cutting budgets and staff as the tertiary education sector faces severe financial pressures.
The latest published accounts for Massey University show it had an operating deficit of $17.4 million in the three months to March, about $700,000 worse than budgeted. Income, of $115.6m, was also down by $2m on budget.
Last year Massey's operating deficit was $36.2m.
'Undue pressure on already-stretched workloads'
Tertiary Education Union organiser Ben Schmidt said the rodent directive was disappointing and was the consequence of reducing staff in facilities management.
He said now was not the time for more cuts.
"Administrative and finance staff are essential to the smooth running of the university and supporting academic staff to focus on teaching and research.
"The vice-chancellor's preliminary decision [on Tuesday] will make their already tough jobs even tougher. The preliminary decision will negatively impact services to both staff and students by placing undue pressure on already-stretched workloads."
Schmidt said union members had raised concerns about workloads increasing without better resources.
Vice-chancellor Jan Thomas. Photo: Supplied
"Members are furious about those actions that are being taken. They're disappointed. This is completely the wrong approach from the vice-chancellor.
"Massey] has said that this is not really about the money. Our members are saying there seems to be little, if any, cost savings that come from that."
The union acknowledged the sector faced problems. Schmidt said the union had offered to sit down and talk to vice-chancellor Jan Thomas and jointly approach the government for talks, but she had not taken that up.
Massey University was approached for comment.