The Western Australian Labor government is pushing ahead with its proposal to merge three of WA’s four public universities despite huge opposition among students, staff and the broader community. If the proposal to merge the University of Western Australia (UWA), Curtin University and Murdoch University goes ahead, the result will be a “mega-university” of 120,000 students, making it the biggest in the country. Both staff and students know that the merger will result in job losses, course reductions, larger class sizes and a decline in education quality.
The proposed merger represents a corporate reorganisation of our universities to more effectively align with the priorities of capitalism in the state, particularly in defence and resources. Mark Barnaba, deputy chair of mining giant Fortescue Metals, will head the steering committee.
The state government’s reasoning is straightforward: Western Australian universities are falling short in meeting industry needs, and their research income trails behind that of east coast universities. Nonetheless, the universities are already largely controlled by the needs of industry. Curtin University is already involved in the government’s “Critical Minerals Trailblazer programme,” which aims to “accelerate the commercialisation of university research” by increasing business investment in research and development related to defence and critical minerals. UWA hosts the Defence & Security Institute, which promotes the $368 billion AUKUS nuclear submarine program.
The main problem with education is not that it isn't sufficiently competitive, but that it’s run as a business. Universities operate as degree factories, treating education as a commodity and students as consumers. University governance boards are more and more led by industry executives and those with corporate and business expertise, placing financial goals at the forefront.
The corporate nature of universities has been highlighted by huge cost-cutting measures at multiple universities around the country, where staff, students and courses are attacked while executives’ million-dollar pay packages are protected. Sydney’s UTS recently paid $7 million to KPMG to design course cuts and organisational restructures. Universities use faux crisis narratives to rationalize these cuts, with a New South Wales parliamentary inquiry reporting that six universities exaggerated financial issues to push through course and staff reductions. In 2021, UWA implemented significant reductions in staff positions and the anthropology and sociology majors. Murdoch University recently announced that budget cuts were necessary because of a decline in international student enrolments. A university system that relies on international students as cash cows is toxic.
The proposed merger will only intensify corporate control of the university system. The new university will continue to have overpaid executives and rising student fees. The government-commissioned Deloitte report titled “Rapid Cost-Benefit Analysis” suggests that raising international student fees could increase revenue for the new university. But the recently merged Adelaide University has already revealed serious risks to university staff and the overall standard of education. Last month, the university introduced a voluntary early retirement scheme and indicated that voluntary redundancies might be considered.
The proposed merger is extremely unpopular: two-thirds of National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) members polled on the plan are against it. On 21 October, 300 students and staff rallied outside state parliament to oppose the merger. The turnout was impressive at the semester's end when students are swamped with assignments. Students expressed concerns about the potential loss of Indigenous Studies courses, while staff worry the change will result in larger classes and heavier workloads.
Rojin Didari, a member of Socialist Alternative and one of the speakers, stated what must be made clear:
“There is nothing good about this merger. It is not about the betterment of our education. It is not about staff and students. It is about corporate interests.”
Liberal Party Shadow Education Minister Liam Staltari addressed the protest after being invited by Curtin Guild President Dylan Storer. The Liberals are opposing the merger, but they are no friends of students or staff. Under Scott Morrison, the Liberals brought in the Jobs Ready Graduate Scheme, which has more than doubled the cost of an Arts degree. John Howard's time in office saw the destruction of universal student unionism. And today, the Liberals want to cut international student numbers. Staltari was booed off the stage after just 20 seconds because students at the protest knew better than our Guild leaders who our real friends are.
Given the strong pushback, local media report that the merger proposal is losing momentum. However, we must keep up a big campaign involving students, staff, and the community to defeat the proposal. Beyond that, we must fight for a different vision of education—one focused on supporting students and the wider community, rather than corporations. A recent report conducted by the NTEU revealed that the federal government spends two and a half times more money on funding private high schools than on public tertiary education. The money is there. We could abolish fees and improve conditions for students and staff alike. It’s a political choice, one that governments of all persuasions are unwilling to make.
The next protest against the merger is a community rally organised by the NTEU on Saturday 7 November at 12pm, Supreme Court Gardens in Perth.
