Residential assistants (RAs) say they have been left worse off after the University of Otago changed its payment system at the beginning of 2015.
Although the change has increased RAs’ initial pay, the accommodation supplement has been scrapped, meaning they have less in their pockets at the end of the week.
In the past, RAs were paid around $375 a fortnight and received a 35 percent discount on their accommodation. The discount generally saved them just over $120 per week.
Under the new system, most RAs are paid $464 a week, but they lose around $34 a week as a result of the discount being scrapped. As RAs are contracted for 36 weeks in the year, this is an annual loss of approximately $1220.
One RA, who will remain anonymous because they are still in their role and their contract stipulates they shouldn’t talk to media, says the change has left RAs “a lot worse off financially than we used to be”.
When asked why the change was made, the university said it is based on “how accommodation is valued for tax purposes”. They said advice they received is that “the provision of accommodation to employees is taxable regardless of how it is structured”.
The university claims there were “discussions with RAs” before the changes were implemented, and that the contract of employment given to RAs at the end of 2014 “included details of the change”.
However, one RA said that when they applied for the position last year, they were informed about the change, “but it wasn’t finalised yet so they couldn’t reveal all the details, which was very fortunate for them”.
The Unicol Information Sheet for 2016 RA applications says that RAs will “be paid a fortnightly salary and charged for full accommodation fees”. The sheet says “the difference of the contribution by you is dependent on your tax rate”.
The university said feedback on the changes has been “sought and received from a range of groups”, which has been “helpful in preparing for 2016”.
However, the university added, “the requirements that led to the changes remain and therefore the current employment terms and conditions will continue into next year”.