ELICOS Teachers Fired Up
A large group of ELICOS (English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students) teachers from 13 different English Language Colleges joined reps at Victorian Council on 10 August.
Teachers gave up their Saturday morning to come together to learn about key rights and entitlements and to workshop plans to transform the ELICOS sector into one where they are respected, paid decent rates and organised to negotiate Enterprise Bargaining Agreements.
It was shocking to learn about some of the issues ELICOS teachers face, including wage theft, underpayment of superannuation, insecure casual work, sham contracting, unpaid additional work, sexual harassment claims brushed under the carpet, and incorrect classifications based on a refusal to recognise prior service.
We were inspired by the determination of those present to create change in their workplaces and across the sector. Attendees committed to following through on actions including:
Talking one-on-one with other teachers about their issues & asking others to join the IEU
Creating and sharing information and resources on ELICOS issues
Setting up meetings of potential members & inviting ELICOS reps or the IEU Organiser
Joining and being active on the new ‘Organise ELICOS’ Facebook page
Organising ELICOS industry wide events.
Contact the IEU office if you work in the ELICOS sector or would like more information!
First published in The Point, V9N4 - August 2019