Home | Member Updates | Academic overtime claim dismissed: Fair Work Commission Rules on Workload limits
Summary: The Fair Work Commission declined to award compensation to three academics at Flinders University who claimed they worked excessive hours beyond their 1725 annual limit. The Commission ruled that while the enterprise agreement does limit full-time academics to 1725 hours per year, there was insufficient evidence of actual excess hours worked and no provision in the agreement for additional compensation.
Key takeaways:
- The enterprise agreement limits full-time academics to 1725 hours per year
- Workload Allocation Units (WAUs) do not directly equate to hours worked
- There was no provision in the agreement for compensation for excess hours
- Existing remedies are limited to workload review processes
- The university lacks a system to track actual hours worked by academics
- The commission cannot order remedies inconsistent with enterprise agreement
A recent Fair Work Commission decision has shed light on the complexities surrounding academic workloads and compensation for excess hours. The case involved three academics at Flinders University who claimed they had consistently worked well beyond their annual limit of 1725 hours.
Interpreting workload models
At the heart of the dispute was the interpretation of the university's Workload Equalisation Model. While 30 Workload Allocation Units (WAUs) represent a full-time load, the Commission ruled that WAUs cannot be directly equated to hours worked. This highlights the challenge of quantifying academic work, which often includes research, teaching, and service components that don't neatly fit into standard hour-based models.
Limits of enterprise agreements
The Commission confirmed that the enterprise agreement does limit full-time academics to 1725 hours annually. However, it also noted this is a "soft" rather than "hard" limit. Crucially, the agreement contains no provisions for additional compensation when this limit is exceeded. The Commission ruled it could not order remedies, such as additional pay or time off, that were inconsistent with the existing agreement.
Systemic workload management issues
The case revealed potential shortcomings in how universities monitor academic workloads. Evidence suggested senior management took a "hands-off" approach, with little oversight of actual hours worked. The lack of a system to track or check academic work hours raises questions about how institutions can ensure compliance with workload limits while respecting the autonomy of academic roles.