When things go pear-shaped: why you need your union

Teachers have plenty to read. But for those yet to join their union, the following testimonials should go to the top of the pile. Take heed of your peers and colleagues: you need experts on your side when the going gets tough.

Academic studies and surveys have repeatedly found teachers and support staff in schools suffering increasing stress levels. In August 2020, the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) reported that 58% of Australian teachers were already feeling ‘quite a bit’ or ‘a lot’ of stress in their jobs, when the OECD average was 49%. Around one-quarter of Australian teachers (24%) reported that their job negatively affected their mental health ‘quite a bit’ or ‘a lot’.

That was before the extraordinary imposts of the global coronavirus pandemic upon teacher workloads and wellbeing.

IEU Senior Industrial Officer Denis Matson says, ‘curriculum changes, reporting demands, interminable meetings, and spiralling parent expectations’ are amongst the factors conspiring to increase stress and anxiety. 

‘There is a demonstrable link between these pressures and frightening statistics on the incidence of stress disorders and workplace conflict in schools.’

Those stresses and conflicts have led to a rise in reportable conduct (RC) cases, says fellow Industrial Officer Gretta Nicholls.

Arbitration during the RC process can effectively end a career, as damaging accusations are aired publicly. If the matter proceeds further, court action is invariably costly and can take a huge toll on mental health and wellbeing. Gretta says contacting a union rep early in the RC process can help you avoid these traumatic outcomes. Many reportable conduct cases are discontinued once the teacher has professional representation; flimsy allegations are thrown out.

Even teachers choosing to leave the profession need union expertise. They may find it difficult to gain employment if their Working with Children check (WWC) is compromised, even if they apply for jobs in sectors that are not child related. Historical legal issues, even if they are only diversion notices, not criminal convictions, are affecting employment prospects a decade later.

‘It’s not just about money,’ Gretta says of many cases she is seeing. ‘Your livelihood can be taken away’.

It’s these unforeseen consequences of action against teachers which make union involvement vital, not optional. Gretta cites the case of a member of 25 years whose career was saved by her first-ever call to the union. These days, a single ‘lapse in judgement or slip of the tongue’ can lead to a complaint. 

Those who do need to engage the RC process require expert assistance even more.

IEU member Dave* sent the union an email of thanks after he was involved in a ‘serious dispute’ at his school. He said the situation was ‘potentially career-ending’ and the ‘expertise, compassion and hard work’ of IEU staff proved invaluable.

‘I am extremely grateful that, thanks to the support of the IEU, the matter has been resolved satisfactorily.

‘As the centre of the conflict, and under stress, I noted that my instincts for protecting myself were not always sound, and union advice was essential for pointing me in the right direction. The forces that I had to face were not inconsiderable, and the issues were complex; in such circumstances, I find it hard to see how someone without union representation would have been able to hold their own, let alone prevail.

‘Hooray for unions, hooray for the IEU!’

A story from a non-member underscores the need for representation. In this case, a Teacher Assistant realised he’d been underpaid by more than an hour a day for five years. 

‘I raised it with the school, but they just told me that they didn’t know what my line manager had arranged with me,’ he told Denis.  

‘I contacted the Union, but here’s the problem: I wasn’t a member.

‘I am owed about $20,000. The Union would have run my case for nothing if I was a member. In fact, my employer probably would have just paid because they knew the union would pursue it. Because I wasn’t a member, I will need to engage a lawyer and that will cost me about $500 per hour for an industrial specialist. I might win, but the Fair Work Act doesn’t permit me to win legal costs, so it will cost me more to run the case than I can win. The employer knows this, so they are confident that I won’t prosecute them and that’s why they are refusing to pay.  

‘Union fees are tax deductible, but legal fees are not. I saved about $1,500 by not being a union member, but it’s cost me $20,000.’

Another rueful teacher told Denis he’d felt he didn’t need the union as a teacher with 15 years of experience who had ‘the respect of everyone at the school’. But in 2019, he dealt with a student who was ‘really struggling’. 

‘His home life was troubled, and his behaviour was a real challenge… After one of those ‘difficult days’, his mother made a complaint about me. It was really unfair, but the student is the ‘client’ and for schools, the client is always right.

‘This sent me down a terrible path. I felt like I had a target on my back. I learnt a whole new language about ‘performance management’, ‘CCYP’ and ‘VIT disciplinary’ proceedings.  ‘Eventually I was cleared, but the stress, on top of the usual stresses working in a school got to me.’

The teacher’s health suffered, and after he confided in a trusted colleague, he found his conversation had gone down on record. He was sent to a doctor of the school’s choosing and told to stay home until they were sure he could ‘perform the inherent requirements’ of the job he’d done so well for 15 years.

‘It was starting to look like they just wanted me to disappear. My job, my career, my reputation, my purpose in life – they were all being taken from me.’

The teacher called the IEU.

‘They knew exactly what I was going through and were sympathetic. Just talking to them made me feel a bit better – at least a bit validated. But it was too late because the Union’s policy works like insurance: it’s too late to take out the policy after the crash has happened. Now I’m up for $500 per hour for a lawyer just to get back to doing what I used to love. I’m sure she’s good, but she doesn’t have the influence over my employer that the Union has. And the added financial stress is not helping me.

‘Can I please BEG all staff in schools: join the Union. It’s the best insurance policy you will ever take out. And with all the pressures, internal conflicts, difficult parents, changes of leadership and everything else, you can be almost certain that there will come a time you will need them. If you still aren’t sure: Union fees are tax deductible and extremely cheap by comparison to the $500 per hour I’m paying my lawyer (which is not tax deductible).’

Teachers who have signed up have recorded some big wins recently. 

Gretta recently assisted a member whose long service leave (LSL) had been paid at a part-time rate when entitled to a full-time rate. The settlement restored the full rate.

She also helped a part-time teacher who didn’t receive an incremental pay increase over a 5-year period. The IEU wrote a letter of demand to the school and the member received payment for all monies owing.

Sometimes, fighting your own battle can also help colleagues. One member had an ongoing role in what was described as a Position of Leadership. 

Her school accepted that she should be paid as a permanent Deputy Principal and paid out the three other DPs monies owing to them.

In good times, it pays to be a union member. When times are changeable and stressful, even more so.

*Real names withheld 

This article was originally published in The Point, V1, No2, 2021.