'Punched in the guts': Sacked academics take uni to Fair Work Commission

Union claims Macquarie University illegally targeted staff for redundancy in Fair Work claim Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 4:44am In short: The National Tertiary Education Union says two decorated academics were illegally sacked because of their advocacy and is taking legal action to have them reinstated. Macquarie University denied the accusations "in the strongest possible terms", saying its redundancy process was "rigorous and fair". What's next? The union said it was extremely rare for it to fund this kind of legal action. Two academics from Macquarie University have alleged their positions were made forcibly redundant because of their union activity in what would amount to an illegal breach of their workplace rights. The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) will fund legal action in the Fair Work Commission (FWC) seeking the women's reinstatement to their jobs after the university's own review raised concerns about the process. Macquarie University declined an interview request, but in a statement denied the accusation "in the strongest possible terms" and said targeting union members would be "unlawful". The statement said, "The university's staffing changes of 2025 followed a rigorous and fair process conducted in accordance with the enterprise agreement, university policy and Australian law." The university said the changes to the Faculty of Arts and Engineering resulted in 61 redundancies, most of them voluntary. "Selection decisions were based on objective, forward-looking criteria, including school and faculty needs, demonstrated performance relative to opportunity and alignment with institutional priorities," a university spokesperson said. 'I think that's part of the strategy and it's illegal' However, Jo Faulkner, from the Faculty of Arts, is pursuing legal action after being told last year that she would be one of nine academics made forcibly redundant. Dr Faulkner is the current NTEU vice-president of the Macquarie University branch and, until recently, represented staff on the academic senate, a key governance body. That work led to disputes with management over recent years as the wider sector grappled with funding challenges and pursued controversial change proposals. "I was very much always on the front lines of battles between management and staff,"Dr Faulkner said. She alleged her redundancy resulted from this advocacy and disputes with management. "I think that's part of the strategy and it's illegal," she said. Macquarie University rejected the accusation that union advocacy or disputes with management played a role in the redundancy. "The university rejects this assertion," a spokesperson said. After she received notice of her redundancy, Dr Faulkner had the decision examined by a three-person Redundancy Review Committee (RRC). The RRC was composed of a staff member chosen by management, a staff member chosen by the union and chaired by a staff member considered neutral. It undertook a lengthy review process involving six meetings and hearing evidence from witnesses. The RRC found two to one in Dr Faulkner's favour, concluding there were risks the redundancy panel may not have been able to make an objective decision, partly because of her union advocacy. It said it could not be confident the university acted "fairly and properly" in selecting Dr Faulkner for redundancy. However, the management-appointed review committee member rejected those concerns and said the university did act "fairly and properly". A senior manager then reviewed the panel's concerns and told Dr Faulkner the redundancy would proceed as planned. "It's been devastating. I'm 54, so I think this is career-ending, really," Dr Faulkner said. 'It was like being winded, punched in the guts' Middle East Studies expert Jumana Bayeh, also from the Faculty of the Arts, is the second academic pursuing a fair work claim after being made forcibly redundant. "It was like being winded, punched in the guts," Dr Bayeh said. "And all the things I'd worked towards, and all the things I'd worked through, in order to become an employed academic, had just been ripped away from me." Dr Bayeh said she publicly challenged earlier management decisions at the FWC and a state government inquiry into university governance, which she believes made her a "target". In its statement, Macquarie University said it was unaware of the union membership details of staff. "Aside from being aware that such conduct would be unlawful, the university is proud of its long history of facilitating constructive relations with staff union representatives," a spokesperson said. Dr Bayeh also sought a review from the Redundancy Review Committee. In a unanimous decision, it found the university did not act "fairly and properly" in selecting Dr Bayeh for redundancy. The committee did not examine what role Dr Bayeh's union advocacy played in the redundancy decision but criticised the "fairness and transparency of the process". "A sense of relief I guess, of vindication, washed over me that it was a unanimous decision from the panel of three,"Dr Bayeh said. "But at the same time, just absolutely gutted and crestfallen that the university or senior management at the university decided to uphold the redundancy decision." The NTEU said it was "really unusual" for RRC decisions to be "overturned" and the findings would be a core part of the two academics' legal claims for reinstatement. "Staff at Macquarie, our members, feel a deep sense of injustice. The change process at Macquarie, which has led to redundancies, has been really, really destructive," NSW NTEU secretary Damien Cahill said. In its statement, Macquarie University said its enterprise agreement with staff meant it was not bound by the RRC findings. "The Redundancy Review Committee (RRC) is not a decision-maker under the terms of the enterprise agreement, so it was not 'overturned'," the spokesperson said. "The RRC provides advice on whether it considers fair and objective criteria were used and whether the university acted fairly and properly in the selection of staff against those criteria." Under the enterprise agreement, the university is legally entitled to proceed with the redundancies. The NTEU and both academics raised further concerns of anti-union bias after a video was captured of the executive dean of the Faculty of Arts, Chris Dixon, tearing down union posters on campus during an open day in August last year. Loading..."He's essentially their boss. I've never heard of a senior management figure at a university going round and ripping down union posters," Dr Cahill said. "And it really demonstrates the clear anti-union bias that exists within the senior leadership at Macquarie University." Macquarie University said it did not accept this "characterisation" of the footage. "Professor Dixon removed the posters because they had been placed without authorisation and outside the university's established processes for displaying materials on campus, not because of their union content," the spokesperson said. It said the NTEU had been provided a "prominent location for a stall" at the open day for it to engage with staff, students and visitors. The women's legal claims have not yet been tested in the Fair Work Commission.