IEU workplace wins in two states
In the middle of a busy school year, we can sometimes forget to celebrate our wins – there’s always work to do. But it’s important for everyone to realise the great work being done by members and staff to achieve real outcomes for educators in their workplaces.
The IEU has recently recorded significant industrial wins in two states.
At St Michael’s Collegiate school in Hobart, 89% of teachers and 96% of general and ECEC (Early Childhood Education and Care) staff have voted in favour of new Agreements.
The re-working of salary classifications sees experienced staff gain a 4% salary increase, rising to 6% plus access to a new incremental level upon ratification of the Enterprise Agreements. All non-teaching staff will eventually see the benefits of these new increments.
The Agreement includes a clause that guarantees salaries will remain above the Education Department at the top of the incremental scale rather than the top of the promotional scale.
Salary increases were set at 4% for 2024 with a guaranteed minimum increase of 3% for 2025 and 2026. Teachers have the added security that the top of their incremental scale will remain 1.5% above the band 1 Level 13 salary point of colleagues in government schools for the life of the Agreement.
Paid Parental Leave has been increased to 24 weeks, making it the highest figure for any school in Tasmania!
From St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat, comes a story about the value of training. In 2023, two IEU members who attended a consultative committee training day in Ballarat realised that they had not been receiving their full additional release times and teaching staff were owed 30 minutes of release for the remainder of the year. Leadership was informed of the issue and that the school was in breach of the 2022 Catholic Education Multi-Enterprise Agreement.
Members held a sub-branch meeting and drafted a letter which was sent to leadership asking for release time to be made up by March 1st, 2024. When this did not happen, IEU staff met with the employer, Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited (DOBCEL), making it clear that they could not reclassify class focus time.
The Rep, Assistant Rep and members worked with the school’s IEU Organiser and IEU Industrial Officers and in June 2024 St Francis Xavier Staff received due payment for their owed release time .
The work continues
These excellent outcomes remind us of the power of not just union but how important it is to have informed members and expert union staff.
And such work never ceases. At St Francis Xavier, the IEU is working to ensure that Learning Support Officers who have been misclassified for many years receive their rightful backpay and increments. The former leadership of the school discouraged this process, threatening that it would cost jobs if it were to be investigated, and the employer remains unwilling to pay the full amount owed.
The IEU will stand by staff who simply want their rightful pay and conditions upheld. We hope that we are soon reporting on another important industrial win that improves the daily working lives of members.