Varsity personnel taking extra strain

ANXIETY, stress, safety concerns and extra workloads are putting university staff under strain and leading to absenteeism as they grapple with the aftermath of #FeesMustFall protests which rocked the country last year.

NMMU in Port Elizabeth, Rhodes in Grahamstown and Wits University in Gauteng have acknowledged the pressures and high levels of anxiety the campaign – which brought a number of institutions to a standstill – has created.

NMMU staff have complained the list of grievances has even led to mental health issues, with some staff being booked off with stress-related illnesses.

Adding to the already volatile situation, NMMU employees claimed decisions made by university management to cut down on costs by freezing vacant posts and capping salary increments had added to their already difficult situation.

Last month, the two unions at NMMU – the National Tertiary Education Union and National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union – attempted to stage two drives, the Black Friday campaign and a peaceful protest, to highlight employee gripes.

But in a late-night turnaround, the university backtracked on a decision not to award increases and bonuses, and the march was called off.

The wave of unhappiness comes in the wake of University of the Free State vice-chancellor Professor Jonathan Jansen warning earlier this year that staff discontent in the higher education sector could have dire consequences.

Wits University vice-chancellor Professor Adam Habib said academic staff felt burdened, especially in the existing climate.

He said universities were experiencing tough times, with rising costs and less income. “There is greater uncertainty [which is] creating anxiety within the sector,” he said.

From academics to administrative employees, NMMU staff have detailed a litany of concerns.

Of the 12 staff members who spoke out, on condition they were not named, nine said they were suffering additional stress, especially with the increase in student numbers.

One senior staff member said: “We are required to attend a number of university engagements while juggling extra workloads, and are then still expected to produce research and better our qualifications.”

Another academic staff member, who has been at NMMU for more than 10 years, said there were no opportunities offered to staff to “sit down with management to see how we are”.

“There is no human touch in the office environment ... no one thinks about or talks about the staff,” she said.

She had been placed on stress leave in the past 18 months and was prescribed medication for stress and anxiety.

An administration employee said he was aware of colleagues experiencing added stress and unfair workloads because vacant positions had been frozen.

“It is stressful most of the time; we must take work home with us to manage unrealistic deadlines,” he said. He was also on anxiety medication. Another senior staff member said: “People feel completely excluded on what is happening or where we are

going. “Things come out of nowhere. Decisions were made last year and some senior staff were not even consulted.”

The man said one of the biggest issues was fear.

“If people speak out they fear being victimised ... staff don’t feel they have safe spaces to talk,” he said.

The man said universities, including NMMU, only engaged with staff for the sake of ticking the box.

Contract staff at NMMU felt even more disenfranchised, claiming the university showed less concern for them even though they provided a necessary service.

Last week, a closed staff meeting to discuss issues affecting NMMU employees, addressed by vice-chancellor Professor Derrick Swartz, was attended by more than 800 staff, but some of those who attended said it as pointless.

“There wasn’t much to inspire [us],” one person said. NMMU director of communications Lebogang Hashatse said the university was aware of certain staff members’ concerns.

Hashatse acknowledged that communication with staff “was not good or thorough”, and said this was due to the intensity and very short time the university had had to deal with #FeesMustFall issues.

“We are very aware that #FeesMustFall has affected us with a huge amount of anxieties,” he said.

“[We will] sit down with staff to understand different experiences and what can be done.”

Rhodes University spokeswoman Catherine Deiner said the institution was aware the #FeesMustFall and #RUreferencelist protests had put extra pressure and stress on staff across the university, as well as the safety of staff being compromised during protest action.

Deiner said Rhodes had implemented measures to address staff concerns and risks associated with protest action.