QUT has released its finalised plan for change to reposition the university for the future, in response to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
QUT Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Sheil today briefed staff on the Change Management Implementation Plan which was released this afternoon.
The Proposal for Change was released on 12 October and was open to internal consultation and feedback from staff until 9 November.
Professor Sheil thanked the university staff and other stakeholders for their input into the plan, saying that more than 1350 written staff submissions were received since the Proposal for Change was released.
“The thought and effort many colleagues put into their submissions has been appreciated as it has enabled us to more fully explore diverse points of view and ensured that our path forward strategically positions us for the future,” Professor Sheil said.
Professor Sheil said as a result of feedback there would be a reduction in the number of redundancies from the 174 initially proposed to 159 finally agreed upon. She said there would also be a small increase in new positions created, from 97 allocated in the Proposal for Change to 99 articulated in the Change Management Implementation Plan.
The number of additional retraining fixed-term positions designed to enable staff to gain new skills and experience stands at 41.
All fixed-term contracts will be honoured.
“Our management of our response to the COVID-19 pandemic has aimed to minimise job loss wherever possible, but any job loss is of course regrettable,” Professor Sheil said.
She said the foreshadowed five faculty realignment structure would go ahead and comprise:
- Business and Law
- Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice
- Engineering
- Health
- Science
Work to effect the change will start on 1 December and the new structure will be effective from 31 January 2021. Expected savings to the university by the end of 2021 will be approximately $36 million.
Professor Sheil said earlier measures agreed to by staff in relation to leave entitlements, the deferral of a pay increase and reduced work hours by senior staff contributed to efforts to manage the scale of change required, and that combined with the recruitment freeze and pauses of capital works places QUT in a sound financial position ahead of the challenges to come in 2021.
Media contact: Rose Trapnell, QUT Media team leader: 07 3138 2361 or 0407 585 901, rose.trapnell@qut.edu.au
