Universities face the challenge of an ageing workforce

A report by Business and Economic Research Limited (BERL) shows that the universities are facing a shortage of academic staff over the next ten years due to an ageing academic workforce and other factors.  Coupled with lower funding relative to countries like Australia, the ageing workforce is a threat to the future quality of university education and research in New Zealand.

The report entitled Academic Workforce Planning - Towards 2020 was commissioned by Universities New Zealand - Te Pōkai Tara (Universities NZ) with funding support from the Tertiary Education Commission.  It is the latest contribution to a wider academic workforce planning project being undertaken by the universities.  Through modelling a number of scenarios, BERL estimates that the universities will need an additional 560 to 920 academic staff each year until 2020. This range is higher than the 500 new academic staff currently recruited per year. 

"The BERL report recommends a number of actions that the universities can take to boost recruitment numbers," says Universities NZ Chair Derek McCormack. "These include working on ways to make an academic career more attractive to those already in the sector as well as those from outside the sector, including academics and professionals overseas." 

Maintaining the international standards and reputation of New Zealand's university system is essential.  It is the skill and passion of academics that underpin the world-class teaching and research vital for New Zealand's economic, social and cultural advancement. 

McCormack doesn't underestimate the challenge.  "New Zealand universities are facing a future with high student demand, capped government funding, a significantly older than average workforce and increasingly intense global competition for academics.  What's more, lower funding means that New Zealand universities are unable to offer the level of salaries that competitor countries, especially Australia, can offer, putting us at a disadvantage."

"However, we will continue to work together with the government and private sector on ways universities can recruit sufficient academic staff of international calibre from at home and abroad.  The BERL report offers better understanding of the issues and a framework for further initiatives," he concludes.

While the academic workforce is ageing like other professions in New Zealand, it is an older workforce to begin with.  How the universities respond to this challenge could provide valuable lessons for the wider New Zealand workforce.