Staff and student protesters entered a meeting at Massey University's campus to demonstrate against proposed cuts, and call for the resignation of Vice Chancellor Jan Thomas. Photo: Supplied / Massey University Students Association Federation
Students and teachers at Massey University are calling for the vice chancellor to resign as the education provider plans significant job cuts.
The protest continues against the university's plan to cut 30 percent of its humanities and social sciences staff on top of a raft of other job cuts across the school's natural sciences and food and advanced technology departments.
Te Tira Ahu Pae - the Massey students' association - vice president Hennessey Wilson claimed he and other protesters were invited to a meeting on campus on Thursday but were blocked by security when they arrived.
"Eventually, we got in and had a chance to speak to the [vice] chancellor," he said.
The university said in a statement that one protester was stopped from entering the forum "due to the nature of their approach".
"Once inside, they were welcomed in by the Vice-Chancellor, invited to the front of the room, and asked if they wished to speak, which they did. The university recognises students have concerns and wish to be heard, and we facilitated a safe space for them to do that."
Several students and some teachers are calling for the resignation of Vice Chancellor Jan Thomas.
"We're here to be the voice for teachers and students, and say the senior leadership team needs to stop the cuts and Jan Thomas needs to resign."
In its statement, the university said "The Massey University Council is confident in the capabilities of the Vice-Chancellor and Senior Leadership Team to effectively conduct management functions, including Proposals for Change".
Staff and student protesters at Massey University's Auckland campus demonstrate against proposed cuts, and call for the resignation of Vice Chancellor Jan Thomas. Photo: Supplied / Massey University Students Association Federation
The cuts would ruin the school, Wilson said.
"It's going to be devastating for the teachers and the students," he said.
"The teachers are losing their jobs, the students are going to lose that quality of teaching."
The remaining teachers would be stretched too thin, he said.
"For instance, in politics and international relations, we have six professors turning into three, and they have 12 PhD students [between them], so they're going to be stressed and overworked."
Te Tira Ahu Pae planned to continue to protest alongside teachers and students as the school entered the exam season.
Massey University said it rejected claims it did not communicate with protesters.
"When protestors have been present, they have been reminded to be respectful, and allow both sides to be heard, but there has been no refusal to communicate at any point."
The university said that it was still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic and closure to foreign students.
"Inflation is having a significant effect on our domestic student funding rates. Like others in the tertiary sector, the university has been signalling difficult financial conditions for some time, and the need to reduce costs and generate income to ensure its financial sustainability."
The university has previously said no decisions would be made until the proposal was "carefully and thoroughly" considered by the college, staff, students and the wider university community.
Details of plan and deficit
Massey University has proposed cuts to more than 100 jobs across subjects including natural and social sciences. It comes after the university forecasted a loss of more than $50 million this year.
The latest forecast operating deficit for 2023, of $53.7m, is contained in a "proposal for change" document circulating to affected parties and obtained by RNZ.
The figure is much higher than the $8.8m deficit the university recorded in 2022.
In a statement, Professor Ray Geor, pro vice-chancellor for Massey's College of Sciences, had said the need to reduce costs and generate income to ensure financial sustainability was urgent for this year and for the near term.
Among the proposals announced this week are no longer offering engineering qualifications at any campus, and the loss of 60 percent of staff in the schools of natural sciences and food and advanced technology.
It was proposed those two schools will cease to exist at its Albany campus, instead having them only in Palmerston North.
This will hollow out a new Auckland building the schools moved into just last year that reportedly cost about $120m.
It also planned to remove 40 full-time equivalent jobs from the current 130 at the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.