Elsewhere in Breaking Views I have written extensively on workplace bullying generally, especially in New Zealand’s public service (Lillis, 2024a), and bullying at our universities specifically (Lillis, 2024b and 2024c). It appears that bullying has been exposed many times in the New Zealand media, but the message does not seem to get home to employers - or are they choosing to turn a blind eye?
Additionally, we are informed of refusals of the University of Waikato to provide responses to Official Information Act 1982 (Parliamentary Counsel Office, 2025) requests to a particular member of staff. Apart from the possibility that one or more members of staff and students there have been subjected to ongoing bullying, another concern relates to the amount of money that the university may have spent on external corporate lawyers, presumably to defend the actions of the university itself.
After the initial refusal by the University of Waikato, an appeal was made to the Ombudsman. However, the Ombudsman decided to uphold the University’s decision not to disclose the amount. Allan Halse, an employment advocate who is acting on behalf of the affected member of staff, says that the Ombudsman’s decision not to uphold the complaint is not a legitimate reason to prevent disclosure of the amount of public money spent by the university in this case.
The matter was then raised with the office of the Auditor-General, where a response from Helen Colebrook (presumably a manager in the Office of the Auditor General), stated that the fact that the University has incurred expenditure on legal costs does not in itself provide a basis for investigation and that the matter sits most appropriately with the Office of the Ombudsman.
The lack of transparency and willful non-disclosure suggests that the University administration do not believe they should be accountable for how and where they spend public money and strongly suggest that it is a significant amount that they do not want made public.
On this one particular case, which has been under dispute for over four years, we suspect that the University of Waikato has spent approximately $500,000 on external corporate lawyers, but that is purely an estimate. This estimate is based on actual figures that were obtained successfully from the University through an Official Information Act request, in a case relating to an overseas Ph.D student who, allegedly, was sexually assaulted by a staff member, had their data used without their consent, and their Ph.D terminated. This case is ongoing and the total spent by the university on that case, to date, approximates $400,000.
Many staff across New Zealand’s universities have raised additional concerns about constraints on academic freedom and freedom of speech on campus. For example, Kierstead (2024) reports that New Zealand’s small size may exacerbate the effects of social ostracism and institutional repudiation on individual academic staff, leaving them with nowhere to turn.
The Official Information Act 1982
The relevant Ministry of Justice webpage makes it clear that the Official Information Act 1982 allows New Zealanders to access information that enables them to participate in government, and hold governments and government agencies to account. New Zealand citizens, permanent residents, and anyone who is in New Zealand may request any official information held by government agencies, including the Ministry of Justice (Ministry of Justice, 2025).
The stated purposes of the Act are:
1. To increase progressively the availability of official information to the people of New Zealand in order:
- To enable their more effective participation in the making and administration of laws and policies
- To promote the accountability of Ministers of the Crown and officials,
and thereby to enhance respect for the law and to promote the good government of New Zealand
2. To provide for proper access by each person to official information relating to that person
3. To protect official information to the extent consistent with the public interest and the preservation of personal privacy.
Section 6 of the Act states that good reason for withholding official information exists, for the purpose of Section 5, if making available that information would be likely to:
1. Prejudice the security or defence of New Zealand or the international relations of the Government of New Zealand
2. Prejudice the entrusting of information to the Government of New Zealand on a basis of confidence, to prejudice the maintenance of the law, including the prevention, investigation, and detection of offences, and the right to a fair trial
3. Endanger the safety of any person; or to damage seriously the economy of New Zealand by disclosing prematurely decisions to change or continue government economic or financial policies.
Clearly, none of these concerns pertain to the case of the University of Waikato member of staff, and both the member of staff and the general public have a right to know the reasons for denying requests made under the Act.
Other Refusals to Comply with the Act
A recent article from Dunedin shows how Health New Zealand is also refusing to respond to Official Information Act requests. Here, Government is accused of blatant disregard for transparency, as unanswered questions continue to mount while the country waits for a decision on the new Dunedin hospital (Littlewood, 2025). Apparently, dozens of Official Information Act requests have been declined or delayed.
Non-Disclosure Agreements and Personal Grievances
Using information successfully obtained through Official Information Act requests, Edgington (2023) informs us that New Zealand universities spent millions of dollars silencing academics during the covid era. She sees one potential area of investigation in the numbers of staff who left and confidential employment settlements made when staff were forced to leave, including gagging clauses or non-disclosure agreements as a result of employment disputes. She notes the international silencing and censorship that can happen to anyone brave enough to speak out.
She says that the incidence of Personal Grievances in New Zealand is high. Case law is limited, not only because of our sparse population, but because of low salaries, high costs of living and the absence of any formal route of legal litigation. No-one is sure how many Personal Grievances occur, partly because many of these agreements are concluded outside the system. However, over the years it appears that Personal Grievances have become normalised in the New Zealand workplace (Edgington, 2023).
Using the information obtained, the hiring and retention of staff between 2018 and 2022 at New Zealand Universities was investigated. During this period, the University of Waikato hired 174 new staff, but 33 staff left. Additionally, 48 staff were awarded Non-Disclosure Agreements or Personal Grievances. Costs were undisclosed.
Edgington says that the Auckland University of Technology appointed 356 academic staff members and 58 left over the five years up to 2023. There were 76 Non-Disclosure Agreements or Personal Grievances in total. Of these, 48 were in 2020/1 and 12 were in 2022/3. Total costs are undisclosed but if we take the mean of the average payouts ($50,368), that could give an approximate total of $1,863,616 over the two years.
Indeed, we hear reports of bullying at Auckland University of Technology. For example, Plummer (2024) reported that 20% of staff had personally experienced discrimination at work during the previous six months and that 35% had personally experienced bullying or harassment at work in the previous six months.
The University of Auckland appointed 345 staff, but 54 left and a total of 15 Non-Disclosure Agreements or Personal Grievances were awarded. Costs were undisclosed.
Massey University made a total of 443 academic appointments, with 86 full time academic staff leaving and a total of 35 Non-Disclosure Agreements or Personal Grievances were completed. In the years prior to 2022 there was an average of 6.25 financial settlements with academic staff per year, but in 2022 the average was eight.
Last year I reported that many serious misconduct cases are in progress against academic staff at our universities but they do not always pertain to strictly academic matters (Lillis, 2024b). At Massey University several staff are on the receiving end of serious misconduct cases for speaking out against university policies. In addition, some outspoken staff have been forced into early retirement.
Apparently, Massey University puts a confidentiality clause on every case without the permission of the person involved.
Victoria University of Wellington had 285 new permanent academic job starters in the five years up to 2023, but over this period a similar number (252) ended. Regarding the costs of this poor retention, the University stated that it has budgeted $658,473 in the current financial year (2023/2024) for recruitment. Of those who left during those five years, 14 Non-Disclosure Agreements or Personal Grievances were concluded. In the four years prior to 2022, there was an average of 1.75 financial settlements with academic staff, but in 2022 there were six. Was this substantial increase due to discriminatory decisions made by the university?
Epilogue
The New Zealand public asks for clarification of the University of Waikato’s position in relation to the affected member of staff and explain its reasons for denying requests for information made under the Act.
It is well-past time to heed the media reports on workplace bullying in our private sector, our public service and our universities, deal with the problem with genuine commitment and create workplaces for New Zealanders that are safe and inclusive and that enable them to perform to their capabilities and achieve positive outcomes for the future of our country.
References
Edgington, Ursula (2023). New Zealand universities spent $millions silencing academics during covid era.
https://informedheart.substack.com/p/new-zealand-universities-spent-millions
Kierstead, James (2024). Unpopular Opinions: Academic Freedom in New Zealand
Lillis, David (2024a). Exposing Workplace Bullying in New Zealand - Part 2. https://breakingviewsnz.blogspot.com/2024/02/david-alexander-lillis-exposing_22.html
Lillis, David (2024b). New Initiatives at Massey University. https://breakingviewsnz.blogspot.com/2024/06/david-lillis-new-initiatives-at-massey.html
Lillis, David (2024c). New Zealand’s Universities - Bullying and Other Issues
https://breakingviewsnz.blogspot.com/2024/06/david-lillis-new-zealands-universities.html
Littlewood, Matthew (2025). Govt accused of withholding info on hospital. Otago Daily Times, 14 January 2025. https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/health/govt-accused-withholding-info-hospital
Ministry of Justice (2025). Official Information Act requests. https://www.justice.govt.nz/about/official-information-act-requests/
Parliamentary Counsel Office (2025). Official Information Act 1982. https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1982/0156/latest/DLM64785.html
Plummer, Benjamin (2024). Auckland University of Technology survey uncovers concerning law school workplace; higher staff bullying rates
Dr David Lillis trained in physics and mathematics at Victoria University and Curtin University in Perth, working as a teacher, researcher, statistician and lecturer for most of his career. He has published many articles and scientific papers, as well as a book on graphing and statistics.
4 comments:
You do not have to " focus on a University Campus to see and/or be the recipient of Academic Bullying ".
On this website we have an Academic, who -
- posts comments that either add to or [more so] refute the article & author for " missing or misusing data within said article"
- will " in a written comment will attack any other post that may have data that is not consistent to their view "
- when contested will then by written reply denigrate what has be placed as a posted comment.
Me thinks that if what has been placed before us, is becoming an endemic problem, not just one University, but may also apply to other Institution's of the same domain, then the Minister of Education " should rise and seek Counsel (from outside these domains) and task People (from other sources) to review all activities within ALL NZ Universities that run counter to good management of staff, students and of all The Financial Management of same". And this should include the " ability to rise, whilst on [and off ] campus, and speak freely " - without censure or having remedial action taken against those who do - " rise an speak, irrespective of what the subject is".
Thanks for publishing this thoughtful piece, David. The toxic workplaces that are endemic to New Zealand are well-established and thoroughly censored - as many counter-narrative issues are here. We know a lot more about the machinery of toxic academia since covid, and its role in promoting propaganda. Many of us academics-in-exile have been victims of Tall Poppy Syndrome over the years, and silenced. But now that legacy media is dying, at least platforms like this can present authentic voices. Incidentally, I wrote about the practical ways that universities control their staff and their research outputs here:
https://propagandainfocus.com/how-universities-control-the-narrative/
David, Good to see you addressing this important issue, and yes, bullying occurs in academia, whether between staff or of students by staff - I don't know whether it is more or less prevalent than in the wider public service or the private sector, where I have also seen it. It is very noticeable among Senior "managers" who may have reached their position through ambition push rather than qualifications and relevant experience, but is also common among academics themselves. No simple answers, as institutional anti-bullying training sessions don't necessarily solve anything. Apart from individuals who have been strong enough to face off a bully without having to leave the organisation themselves, what I have seen work is a group of staff formally advising HR of their collective refusal to continue to work under a proven bully. JR
Unhappy campus...that Vic retention is appalling. For context, what are the gross figures for these institutions ? Half a mil sounds like a lot...but without context...
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