HUNTER Workers secretary Leigh Shears has called on the University of Newcastle (UON) to reverse its proposal to cut workplace health and safety programs.
He said workplace health and safety (WHS) was Hunter Workers' "number one priority".
"It stops killing people," he said.
"Once upon a time workers were expendable, there wasn't a focus on WHS, there was a focus on profit."
UON decided last year to remove its Master of Workplace Health and Safety, as part of its course optimisation program.
UON has proposed in a March 30 schools consultation paper the "additional removal of the discipline of WHS including the Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate in WHS due to a declining number of student enrolments". Consultation closes on April 30.
Mr Shears said UON had consulted Hunter Workers before establishing its WHS programs in 1988, which he said were comprehensive, renowned for their quality and depth, had received international recognition and trained many of the state's WHS inspectors.
"We're in a region that is in the midst of change ... we need to develop more and provide more resourcing and more focus on WHS programs that we have, rather than cutting them," he said.
A UON spokeswoman said all feedback would be considered before final decisions were made and there were "clear signals from government and industry that our sector needs to adapt and support students to graduate into priority areas where career growth will be strongest".
"What we will do is balance those signals with our own regional profile of economic opportunities and jobs growth, ensuring our graduates are job-ready for the Hunter, the Central Coast and surrounding regions," the spokesperson said.
"All of the feedback we receive during this time, including the feedback from Hunter Workers Union, will be considered in this context before final decisions are made."
