IEU members in Tasmanian Catholic schools: It’s time to vote Yes in the industrial action ballot!
If you are an IEU member in a Tasmanian Catholic school you can now vote on the right to take protected industrial actions in support of a fair Agreement.
Voting opened on Tuesday 13 August and runs until 2pm 20 August.
All members should have been sent a voting link by SMS and/or email by independent ballot agent CiVS Voting. The ballot is secure and confidential.
You will be voting on 18 potential industrial actions ranging from messages on emails to multiple full-day stoppages.
IEU members in Tasmanian Catholic schools are urged to vote - and to vote ‘YES’ to all questions.
Notice of protected industrial action can go ahead if:
at least 50 per cent of members take part in the ballot
more than 50 per cent of the votes favour the industrial action.
David Brear, IEU General Secretary, says, “No educator wants to take industrial action that would close classrooms, but after more than two years of employer delays, we are simply left with no alternative.
“It is beyond belief that Catholic education employers are continuing to hold out on bringing working conditions in their schools up to the standard set by government schools. We want Catholic schools to be great workplaces – that’s what students and their families deserve. Unfortunately, Catholic Education Tasmania seems determined to make their schools second-rate workplaces.
“It's particularly disappointing to note that as an organisation which professes to be family friendly and to believe in social justice, Catholic Education Tasmania is refusing to bring parental leave entitlements up to the industry standard and continuing to withhold low-income payments totalling $2000 from those staff who need it most as they deal with the effects of inflation.”
Why is the IEU considering industrial action?
On 1 September this year, the previous Tasmanian Catholic Agreement will have been expired for three years. The IEU has in good faith spent two and a half years attempting to negotiate a replacement Agreement, but Catholic Education Tasmania (CET) has consistently dragged the chain.
Throughout 2022 they avoided bargaining meetings until the IEU was forced to seek a Good Faith Bargaining Order from the Fair Work Commission to force them to the negotiating table.
In mid-2023, 18 months into bargaining, CET tabled unacceptable new claims which would allow them to forcibly relocate school staff and extend the working year.
These delays have led to working conditions in Tasmanian Catholic schools falling significantly behind Tasmanian government schools:
Teachers have less time to plan and prepare their classes
Paid parental leave entitlements are four weeks less for birth parents and three weeks less for partners
Primary school teachers have more face-to-face teaching time.
The CET is also withholding payments totalling $2000 which have been made in government schools to teachers in their first four years and the vast majority of School Support Employees (including Teacher Assistants, receptionists and student wellbeing staff). The IEU negotiated a clause ensuring that pay parity would continue after the expiry of the last Agreement, but the CET is arguing the technicality that badly-needed Low Income Payments do not form part of base salaries.
Frustrated, overworked members told us that the campaign needs to go to the next level to force meaningful, respectful action from their employer.
What is a PABO?
Before employee industrial action can be protected (legal), the employees must first apply to the Fair Work Commission for approval to hold a PABO and the employees must vote in favour of taking the action.
A ballot can be held when:
bargaining fails for a new enterprise agreement
the existing agreement is out-of-date.
A PABO is a secret ballot that allows union members to vote on whether they want the option to take protected industrial action. Only IEU members are allowed to vote on the PABO and it's only IEU members who can take protected industrial action if it is granted.
If IEU members vote Yes and the Fair Work Commission grants the PABO, it doesn’t mean the union will take industrial action, but it means we can take industrial action, within a prescribed timeframe, that is protected by law.
IEU discusses PABO on ABC radio
Survey reveals staff disillusionment
The following responses to an IEU survey of Tasmanian Catholic education staff reveal the frustration of workers.
General Frustration:
“I truly love my job as a teacher, but the good will economy of staff has officially run out. Schools are only continuing to function because of unpaid labour and our inherent sense of care for the children in our schools and their futures, but I feel let down by my system ̶ they are not making me feel valued, nor are they respecting my right to a work-life balance.”
"Some staff members are in tears regularly as they are so overwhelmed."
"2 years is way too long. The TCEO have a loyal workforce, but we are being tested."
Concerning Low-Income Payments:
"Our agreement promises parity with DECYP. Why are we being shortchanged?"
"We do the job of special needs support workers but are not paid accordingly."
Hurting staff hurts students:
“Support is well overdue and not only are teachers suffering but as a result students are suffering with learning outcomes due to the unsustainable expectations of staff members”.
Key concerns of IEU members in Tasmanian Catholic schools
Parental leave: One member said, “Working for a family-focused organisation and now being pregnant I feel that it is deeply unfair that if I were to have a child whilst working for a government school I would have four extra weeks of paid leave”.
Extra working days: The TCEO claim to increase the number of days already overworked teachers are required to work is another slap in the face for staff.
Forced transfer of staff: Unsurprisingly, the TCEO claim to be able to move staff to schools as far as 65 km from their homes is considered “far too excessive”.
What happens next?
IEU members in Tasmanian Catholic schools have one week to vote on which industrial actions they wish to take. If members vote Yes to the PABO, and CET refuses to budge on its contentious claims, industrial action will follow. The industrial action must start within 30 days, unless the IEU applies for an extension and the Fair Work Commission agrees.