‘Sleeping with the enemy’: how far are you prepared to go to make a difference? A look at the divide between academic and allied staff

Abstract

There have been a number of papers written about the academic–allied staff divide within educational institutions in the Western world. This paper considers one particular institution to ascertain whether there is evidence of a divide and, if there is, whether there are other factors that influence the perception of a divide; for example, length of tenure, gender and the home department. This paper looks at what the literature perceives as a divide in terms of the numbers, qualifications, contractual conditions, the perceived importance of roles, whether these roles are changing, and the understanding of each other's roles. Finally, the paper looks at what impact a divide will have upon a strategic plan. The case of Manukau Institute of Technology is then compared with the literature review. This paper is based on a literature review and data gathered from a questionnaire; however, the author also draws on her own experience of being married to ‘one of the enemy’.

Keywords:

• academic staff
• allied staff
• staff divide