The IEU’s ongoing campaign to recruit new students and graduates

The student teacher/graduate program remains a core area for organising within our union, with the IEU committing an 0.4 staff loading to free up an Organiser to undertake this important work.

Campaign to recruit

Education students and graduates are the future of our union and it’s our job as unionists to let them know why it’s so important they sign up and get involved!

Stage one: conversion calls

At year’s end we will launch our conversion process in which IEU staff will make personal calls to all of our listed student members who graduated this year.

Stage two: welcome card

The IEU will deliver welcome cards to all school-based union delegates with instructions to present these to new staff in a personalised recruitment pitch. The cards provide information about graduate rights, IEU training and reasons to join the union.

Stage three: ‘Don’t be a mug, join the union’

The IEU will give away IEU branded coffee mugs as a gift for any member who signs a graduate teacher. This initiative will be widely promoted in union communications.

New students and graduate teachers will now receive a video link welcome to the IEU that details the role of the union and the work we do. Student members will receive biannual updates and supportive communication as they track through their courses.

The first of these will be a ‘placement teacher tips and tricks training’ video provided to each student two weeks out from their first placement in schools.

Understanding Young Workers research from the ACTU has informed us that young workers new to the union movement can require many ‘asks’ before they finally join. When speaking to young workers about joining we continually highlight the beneficial outcomes unions secure.

Why Unions Matter by Michael Yates examines how peer recruitment is often more effective in unionising efforts because it relies on the trust and camaraderie developed in workplace relationships. We understand that members who were recruited by colleagues feel more accountable to the group, leading to higher rates of both recruitment and retention.

Student teachers

In universities, our efforts have centered on building relationships with key staff to identify and create opportunities for student engagement.

We have concentrated on making presentations that address the gap between theory and practice for prospective members. While academic theories are important for foundational knowledge, industry-relevant information helps students connect their learnings with real-world examples. This approach provides a dual benefit by verifying the lecturer’s guidance and establishing the union as a trusted source of knowledge that supports better career outcomes.

IEU lectures to large groups of students have proven to be the most effective method to unionise and educate future members of our industry. The presentations ensure that teaching students and graduate teachers are aware of the importance of joining and participating in their union, and help them appreciate the hard-won wages and conditions they are inheriting.

By the end of November, the union will have delivered 34 presentations and lectures to students. By early October, 290 students had joined the union, already matching the six-year average. Our goal of 370 student joins for the year remains on target.

Graduate teachers

At the time of writing, the IEU had signed 203 graduate teachers between January and October, surpassing the six-year average of 163, and we expect a further increase to this figure after our December conversion calls.

Graduate recruitment has driven by in-school member-to-member conversations and by IEU Organisers seeking out graduate teachers on their school runs

The IEU has also attended 17 graduate information sessions run by the Victorian Institute of Teaching and engaged with four graduate induction days run by the different Catholic Diocese. While we have been welcomed to induction events at all the regional Victorian Dioceses, we unfortunately can’t say the same for the Melbourne Archdiocese!

The AEU and the IEU

For many years, we’ve worked sideby-side with the AEU to create a strong presence at Victorian universities. This has created new opportunities to develop activist student members, connect with student education societies, develop relevant PD and training, gain a detailed understanding of the common concerns among preservice educators, and secure supportive relationships with university staff.

As we continue to invest in this space, more opportunities to engage with teaching students will emerge, which will improve our recruitment of graduate educators.