The IEU on the Victorian Catholic Agreement a year on

It was a huge challenge to overturn decades of work intensification, and teething issues were to be expected, but many IEU members say the Catholic Education Multi Employer Agreement is a ‘gamechanger’.

Though there are difficulties where employers are seeking ways around the provisions of the Agreement, many staff members appreciate such things as the reduction in face-to-face class times.

‘Our school runs a 10-day cycle,’ said a member at a suburban College. ‘With the face-to-face reduction, I’ve got three hours back per week, which gives me back Sundays so I can spend more time with my family.’

One veteran member jokingly ‘resented’ the reduction in meetings, saying he now knew he had wasted ‘5000 hours’ in meetings that he could have avoided if the CEMEA had been in place throughout his long career!

Maternity leave improvements

At St Charles Borromeo School in Templestowe, IEU Rep and Member Daniella Rausa is appreciating the new maternity leave provisions in the CEMEA.

‘The extra two weeks that have been afforded to me in the new Agreement (up from 14 to 16 weeks) allows me to spend more quality time with my new family. On top of these extra weeks, I also receive superannuation paid on the first 52 weeks of my maternity leave and the leave includes recognition of service.’

These last two points are vital – while the additional money in the pocket of a new parent makes a big difference, the long-term benefits are found in the extra super and the additional increment up the salary scale, which together make huge inroads into tackling the gender wealth gap.

Many such improvements will only be noticed by members gradually, as they become applicable to their personal situations. But scores of these important changes were negotiated by the IEU in the CEMEA.

Workload improvements

An IEU Rep at a school in Melbourne’s north said, ‘the Agreement has curbed the excessive workload for our teachers through the limit on meetings, the 90 minute reduction in face-to-face teaching plus reducing extras to five this year and then zero in 2025’.

‘This has certainly freed up teachers, which they are very appreciative of.’

Others reiterate the importance of the reduction in face-to-face time.

‘Teachers have found that just the hour-and-a-half reduction has had a major impact with their workload

‘Reducing the number of meetings per week has also helped enormously.’

Some teachers believe the Agreement has ‘drawn a line in the sand for teachers and stopped the continual add-on’.

‘To remove Level 1 for support staff and then moving them across to Level 2 with appropriate salary increases was also far overdue.’

Ongoing challenges

It’s been great to see many forward-looking schools doing a sensational job of implementing the workload improvements in the CEMEA, bringing real improvements to their entire operations.

However, there are still some workplaces seeking a shortcut around every clause, particularly when it comes to time in lieu. IEU Organisers have been busy working with Reps, members and school leaders to push for correct implementation, but there is still a long way to go in some schools. If you have any implementation concerns, check out our Know Your Agreement advice sheets at the link below.

Most schools that make CEMEA work for them do so through genuinely collaborative consultative committees which share issues and offer each other solutions which fit the needs of each workplace.

The basic idea of the ‘Workload Agreement’ is not hard to grasp – schools with respected staff who have the time and energy to do their jobs properly perform better for students, parents and employers than schools with exhausted, exploited staff.

Pay – the next frontier

No one needs to be told that cost of living pressures have made everyday life tougher, and that pay rises for nurses and teachers in other states set a precedent that must be heeded in Victorian Catholic education.

The good news for staff in the sector is that the next bargaining period is nearly upon us and pay increases will be the primary focus for the IEU.

With teacher shortages now chronic, it would be a foolish employer who would stand in the way of deserved improvements for their staff. We will let you know about the survey, and the upcoming campaign for wages in Term 4, in the year’s final edition of The Point.

For clarification of your rights, go to the Victorian Catholic Agreement page on your website, where you’ll find fact sheets about all the major CEMEA workload. Head to: ieu.news/vcaresources