Victorian Catholic school IEU Reps unite
A major IEU Rep training event held at the iconic Trades Hall has reaffirmed the union’s commitment to fair bargaining in the pivotal Victorian Catholic campaign.
More than 100 people filled the union movement’s iconic Solidarity Hall to collaborate, compare notes on the fight for a Single Interest Authorisation (SIA), and plan the next phase of the campaign. The event was the centrepiece of a statewide training blitz, building on the momentum of last year’s SIA campaign.
General Secretary David Brear thanked Reps and members for their work securing nearly 19,000 signatures on statements of support for the SIA.
He said, “this is a really historic moment for our union.” Employers in the sector are taking “a strong anti-union stance… so we’re in for a really big fight. Their offer (to staff) was a deliberate attempt to undermine the union, and to weaken people’s voice. That was an incredible achievement by IEU Reps and members to stand up to that offer, there was a lot of pressure on people to agree to it.”
He compared the current SIA campaign to the existential battle the IEU fought in 1997, when it demanded pay parity with state school colleagues. He noted that wages in Victoria are now lagging far behind other states, making the SIA campaign critical.
“Good wage outcomes don’t just fall out of the sky. The employer’s not just going to say, ‘oh, yeah, I’m feeling generous today, I will do what you ask’. You’ve got to put pressure on them in order to win these kinds of outcomes.”
Guest speaker Sally McManus, Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), said the IEU’s work on SIA had important implications beyond education.
ACTU Secretary Sally McManus.
She described the campaign as “a beautiful prize” to pass on to other workers who will follow the union’s example.
“It was so wrong that you couldn’t take industrial action. We’re all committed to absolutely seeing you win. You are passing on to the people coming behind you. Thank you, because all workers in Australia will benefit from what you are doing.”
IEU Assistant Secretary James Rankin with star Reps Michelle Ramsey, Karen Murphy and Chris Ruys.
Reps on centre stage
Karen Murphy, Rep at St Mary’s School Mansfield, evoked spontaneous applause when she recounted how her workplace of “lovely” but far from militant colleagues achieved a 100% sign-up rate for SIA statements of support.
“I was really careful to use non-confrontational language - I stuck to facts and I tried really hard not to be emotional. I didn’t once tell them what to do or say; I gave them the facts and got back to them…”
This was a common theme throughout the day: to motivate non-unionists, Reps presented the facts about why the union needed leverage in negotiations and how it was being denied.
Michelle Ramsey, Rep at Catholic Ladies College Eltham (the first employer to achieve majority support for an SIA last year) gave colleagues space to ensure their signatures. She explained the SIA and the union’s Log of Claims, covering everything from Education Support Staff classifications to leave entitlements, and added, “I’ll come back next week to see if you want to sign it.”
“I ensured them privacy and took a gently, gently approach… and they came through.” Her line with reticent colleagues was simply, “It’s entirely up to you, but this is how I voted and why, and I’ll leave it up to you…”
Being patient, giving people space, and providing the information they needed worked.
One key thing that had been essential for many was the recently enshrined right to reasonable communication with all colleagues, allowing Reps to confidently circulate information about important workplace matters with non-members. Rep after Rep described how critical this had been in 2025, particularly given the overwhelming barrage of one-sided ‘information’ circulated by the VCEA to all staff.
These hard-fought recent wins have real and immediate benefits and must be utilised to strengthen collective networks.
Chris Ruys, Rep at Killester College, said it was “surprisingly easy” to win support for the SIA because “all the information about why it was necessary was out there.”
“The issue’s so straightforward – the right to strike – it didn’t matter if people were union or not; they thought they should have that right. It was a no-brainer even for non-union people.”
Chris said misinformation drives him nuts, so he undertook paragraph-by-paragraph rebuttals of misleading employer claims.
“Staff in my school got on board with it and stopped me in the corridor saying, ‘we really look forward to their emails now!’”
Repeatedly, Reps said that winning over staff, both members and non-members, to sign statements of support had not been a hard sell. Once they knew they were being denied fundamental rights enjoyed elsewhere in Australia, they were motivated to sign.
Reps went away with ideas for upcoming events and actions, including the scheduled AEU strike on 24 March. The gathering was determined to maintain momentum for a SIA so the eventual Agreement addresses the needs of their workplaces.
Whatever actions each Sub-branch chooses, they will be guided by committed and informed Reps. The upbeat and inspiring day of collaboration was a reminder that the genuine commitment of Reps remains the union’s most powerful and precious resource.
