Gippsland unionists reflect on local change and global fights
Ingrid Morton (Rep Berry Street Morwell), Andy Hyde (IEUVT), Gienelle Jones (Rep St Gabriel’s Traralgon), Rupert Stephenson (IEUVT/GTLC), Dimity Hawkins (ICAN), Kylie Busk (IEUVT), Dave Sweeney (ICAN), Jess Silvester (Rep Gippsland GS Sale), Ali Hay (St Paul’s Anglican GS Warragul).
IEU Victoria Tasmania Deputy Secretary General Kylie Busk returned to her roots on Friday 1 May when she attended the Gippsland Trades & Labour Council (GT&LC) May Day Dinner in Morwell .
The event formed part of the annual Union Town conference, held on 30 April and 1 May and hosted by the GT&LC, which represents 23 affiliated unions and more than 17,000 members.
A proud born and bred Gippslander and former Organiser in the region, Kylie joined current IEU Organiser and GT&LC President Rupert Stephenson, Federal Labor Senator Raff Ciccone, Victorian Labor Minister Harriet Shing, and more than 100 unionists, politicians, community leaders, advocates and delegates from regional trades and labour councils at the event ̶ the centrepiece of the area’s two-day celebration of unionism and activism.
Kylie said the event reinforced the need for proper community resourcing during the energy transition.
“The challenges facing many areas of regional Victoria aren’t abstract policy debates ̶ they are daily reality. The decline of coal mining and timber industries in the Latrobe Valley as the region’s major industry affects every part of the community, including local families and the school communities where IEU members work. In Gippsland and many other areas across Victoria and Tasmania, regional change is a lived experience.”
Across the two days, Union Town amplified the voices of workers and communities in regional Victoria, creating space for discussion, shared problem-solving and collective action aimed at ensuring no worker or community is left behind.
Kylie also joined Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and Australian Services Union delegates on a panel titled Education and Health in Transition: Building Stronger Futures.
On Friday, IEU Gippsland Reps gathered in Morwell for Rep training focused on navigating difficult workplace conversations and managing grievances. Participants from primary and secondary Catholic and independent schools shared experiences and practical approaches to issues they face more frequently than colleagues in other regions.
By aligning the training with the Union Town program, members experienced what Organisers described as “a rich day of union immersion”, combining IEU school-focused professional development during the day with broader engagement with the union movement in the evening. The program also strengthened members’ understanding of the history and solidarity of unionism in Gippsland.
The May Day Dinner at the Morwell RSL highlighted the GT&LC’s work over the past 12 months, including community initiatives such as Turf Force, which provides horticultural training for at-risk young people, and Let’s Get Driving, which supports newly arrived migrant women to obtain their driver’s licences.
The guests of honour were anti-nuclear campaigners Dimity Hawkins and Dave Sweeney, who brought the Nobel Peace Prize medal ̶ affectionately nicknamed “Alfie” ̶ awarded to their group, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which won the prize in 2017 for its work highlighting the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons and advancing the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Hawkins and Sweeney spoke about ICAN’s ongoing campaign for nuclear disarmament and the continuing relevance of the Treaty. Rupert said it was a privilege to host them and to see attendees engage with “Alfie”.
IEU representative Ali Hay (St Paul’s Anglican Grammar School, Warragul) told members: “I was able to attend some union PD with other Reps from Gippsland, and we all attended the Gippsland Trade Union Gala Dinner. I’m so pleased I went.”
She said it felt fitting that the event coincided with the 100th anniversary of the General Strike calling for an eight-hour working day.
“It reminded me of the power of like-minded people who want to and are willing to make change,” she said.
Rupert, Kylie and ‘Alife’