What Starts Here…Ends Where? UT Austin’s Leadership is Failing Its Workforce
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Over the past year, The University of Texas at Austin’s senior leadership has taken a series of actions that reveal a profound disregard for its backbone: the thousands of dedicated staff members who tirelessly support our students and faculty. These choices, ranging from policy shifts to reactive measures, have left many questioning the institution’s commitment to its own workforce.
If ‘what starts here changes the world,’ we must ask ourselves: what kind of change are we leading? Based on recent decisions, it appears this change may not be positive.
The following list outlines some of the most egregious actions taken by the university leadership in the past 12 months:
Salary Disparities and Cost of Living: UT has failed to increase staff salaries to a livable wage, despite the following:
- The skyrocketing cost of living in the Austin area
- Higher-level academic, athletic, and executive leaders maintaining six- to seven-figure incomes
- The University’s substantial endowment and multi-million dollar grants
Overreach in Implementing SB 17: UT has over-complied with SB 17 by:
- Eliminating offices and employees dedicated to supporting and serving UT’s diverse student body
- Potentially exceeding the law’s requirements, to the detriment of campus inclusivity
Suppression of Campus Expression: UT led a controversial shutdown of student, staff, and faculty expression on campus, characterized by:
- Heavy-handed tactics
- Alleged violent actions by law enforcement
- Potential violation of First Amendment rights
Abrupt Elimination of Work-from-Home Options: UT removed remote work flexibility for staff in a manner that was:
- Non-transparent and rushed
- Disruptive to employees with family care responsibilities
- Forcing staff to choose between their jobs and family obligations due to limited and costly childcare options in Austin
- Presented with no efforts to mitigate the impacts of this significant and hasty change
Disconnect Between Expectations and Support: Despite these challenges, UT continues to:
- Expect unwavering dedication from staff in advancing the University’s mission
- Pursue financial growth through its endowment, grants, and sponsorship deals
- Neglect the well-being and job satisfaction of its core workforce
- Fail to acknowledge the increasing workload and stress placed on remaining staff members after budget cuts and eliminations.
These actions demonstrate a concerning pattern of decisions that prioritize political and economic interests over the welfare of the University’s essential human resources — its staff and students. This approach is unsustainable and contradicts the principles of a public institution dedicated to education and community service.
Looking at the list above, we ask the University’s senior leadership: How are we supposed to react? Are we supposed to feel valued?
We call on the University’s senior leadership to address these issues transparently and to engage in meaningful dialogue with staff representatives to find sustainable solutions that align with UT’s mission and values. How can we fulfill our potential to change the world when the very people tasked with supporting that mission are undervalued and overburdened?
