SIA Update: One final push for fair bargaining

The IEU is entering the final week of its historic Single Interest Authorisation (SIA) campaign in Victorian Catholic education, with majority staff support now confirmed at employers covering around 90% of workplaces.

With a key Fair Work Commission (FWC) hearing just days away, the union is pushing hard to gather every remaining Statement of Support (SOS) to strengthen the case for fair, sector-wide bargaining.

A marvellous milestone

The IEU has now secured the support of more than 18,000 Victorian Catholic education staff for its SIA application – a strong majority of all eligible staff.

After recently achieving majority support across the sector’s largest employer, Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS), the union now has majority support across 30 employers, covering more than 400 Victorian Catholic schools. We are on the cusp of majority support at the remaining employer groups, most notably the dioceses of Ballarat and Sandhurst (DOBCEL and CESL).

The crucial role of members

Next week, the IEU will attend a key hearing at the Fair Work Commission which will help set the course of the SIA application. To maximise our chances of success, we need our statement of support numbers to be as strong as possible.

General Secretary David Brear urged “one final push” from members this week.

“Every Statement of Support (SOS) strengthens our case and brings us closer to being able to negotiate the meaningful, long-term improvements to salaries, conditions, workloads and safety that you deserve.

“If you know of any colleagues who “just haven’t got around” to signing, please urge them to do it now.

“In DOBCEL and CESL, that one extra signature could tip us into a majority. Across all other employer groups, every additional SOS counts – if your school is at 55%, we need it at 60%; if it’s at 75%, we’re stronger at 80%.”

Employer misinformation

Throughout this process, the Victorian Catholic Education Authority (VCEA) has continued to claim that a “cooperative” workplace agreement is still possible, while ignoring the clear wishes of the majority of staff who have signed in support of fair, sector wide bargaining.

The reality is that there is now only one viable pathway: an Agreement negotiated under the same terms and with the same rights as Catholic education staff across the rest of Australia, via a Single Interest Agreement.

If the VCEA genuinely respected the wishes and wellbeing of staff, it would:

• agree to commence Single Interest bargaining without further delay, and
• agree to pass on the proposed 7 % pay rise and 1,500 dollar bonus this year as a lawful, good will interim measure while fair Agreement negotiations are underway.

Instead, the employers’ ongoing refusal to act is delaying a fair deal for staff and reveals their so called “offer” to be a tactic designed to avoid genuine, rights based bargaining.

This campaign matters to all unionists

ACTU Secretary Sally McManus says the IEU’s successful campaign with Victorian Catholic education staff to apply for an SIA is of great importance to the entire union movement.

Last week, Sally said the union movement’s push for crucial multi-employer bargaining reform was “on the precipice” three years ago when she asked the IEU to step up, both through our campaign work and by participating in a Senate inquiry looking at the proposed legislation.  Read more.

One week to go: The final countdown

David said the rest of the union movement was firmly behind the members leading this campaign, and that, thanks to their collective efforts, the IEU is now closer to securing the bargaining rights that hard-working staff in Victorian Catholic education need and deserve.

David said, “This is a moment to recognise a significant milestone – more than 18,000 staff standing together – and to use that momentum to secure every last Statement of Support in the coming week.

“Together, we are showing what true solidarity can achieve.”