IEU calls on staff in Victorian Catholic schools: Sign. Organise. Win.
In Term 4, we’ll be asking all staff in Victorian Catholic schools to officially endorse bargaining for a single interest Agreement. This statement of support will be made by signing a form either online or in person.
Every statement made will support the IEU’s application to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for a Single Interest Authorisation (SIA), which enables bargaining for this type of multi-enterprise Agreement.
Bargaining under an SIA provides access to protected industrial action and good faith bargaining orders from the FWC, as we fight for a new Agreement that delivers on urgent priorities: workload, wellbeing, and long-overdue pay rises. The Victorian Catholic Education Authority (VCEA), on behalf of employers, wants to deny us these basic rights – already available to education workers in other sectors and states – by refusing to agree to an SIA.
If the VCEA continues to refuse, the IEU can only obtain an SIA from the FWC once the current Agreement expires on 31 December 2025 – and only for the Victorian Catholic education employers where we can show that a majority of staff want to bargain for a single interest employer Agreement.
That means we need the backing of the whole workforce – members and non-members alike.
Is this a public petition?
No. You are signing a statement which will support our union’s application. If a majority of staff members sign and all other legal requirements are met, the FWC will grant the SIA.
The statements are shown to the FWC – not employers – so that the FWC can assess whether there is the required majority support for granting an SIA.
Your statement of support, together with those of your colleagues, has real power to make the best Agreement possible.
Development of our Log of Claims
In Term 3, the IEU consulted members widely to refine the union’s Log of Claims, visiting sub-branches and conducting online meetings to share critical information and explore options. The draft Log of Claims was the product of extensive member research undertaken earlier in the year.
Now, the next phase begins, when the real heavy lifting is done by all of us together. By achieving an SIA, we can negotiate with real strength around our Log of Claims.
Employers are holding up bargaining, not the IEU
The VCEA saying they want a ‘quick resolution’ of this bargaining round – but if they had applied for an SIA, bargaining could already be underway.
The VCEA say we should trust them, but recent negotiations in this sector have been marked by delays and dysfunction. Last time around, one Catholic employer negotiating as a single interest completed a deal ten months before the others, who refused to do so. Meetings were postponed and progress on the multi-employer Agreement was glacial.
Without the union standing up to them, these employers have shown they will not promptly deliver fair workload management, genuine wage improvements, or meaningful commitments to safety and wellbeing.
Time to act
Together, we can get the signatures we need.
That’s where you come in.
In Term 4, we need members to:
Put your name to a statement of support.
Talk to non-members about what’s at stake.
Ask non-members to sign too.
Now is the time to organise, motivate, and act. We need every member’s help asking non-members to support single-interest negotiations, so we have the best chance of strengthening our bargaining power.
The IEU has planned. We’ve consulted. Now we’re calling on every member in the sector to help us secure the basic rights under an SIA that bring employers to the table prepared to bargain for a fair deal.
This is our moment to empower ourselves, and to claim what employers won’t freely give.
Let’s do this – for each of us, and for all of us.