Subject: We’ve reached majority - now let’s make it stronger

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Dear colleagues, 

The IEU negotiating team and Catholic employers continue to meet. The IEU’s aim is to secure a new Agreement as soon as possible, with well-deserved wage increases, no erosion of existing conditions, and improvements to key entitlements including time in lieu and the 30+8 provisions.  

The union has already made the imperatives of staff clear to Catholic employers, and we are actively seeking the employers’ timely response with a fairer offer. Catholic employers still have substantial work to do. The employers are yet to provide their proposed redrafting of redundancy, parental leave and long service leave provisions, and they continue to resist improvements on other key issues.  

The outcome in government schools has delivered historic salary increases and major improvements to conditions that are also badly needed in Catholic schools. In previous rounds of bargaining, however, Catholic education staff have waited a year or more after government schools to secure their own Agreement.  

We want to make this time different. So even as the IEU continues to negotiate with employers, we are also maintaining our Single Interest Authorisation campaign in pursuit of fairer bargaining rights. The strength of the SIA campaign is being felt by the employers at the bargaining table. 

The IEU’s current SIA application covers 24 employers. We’ve now also reached majority support for a SIA at MACS, St Bede’s College, FCJ College Benalla and Catholic College Sale. 

We’re still waiting for the Fair Work Commission’s decision on the current SIA application - but this nationally significant case could be decided at any time. 

If the SIA is granted, but employers still have no acceptable offer that employees have voted up, the 24 employers currently in the application will enter the single-interest bargaining framework. The IEU will then seek to add other Catholic employers where majority support for our fair bargaining campaign can be demonstrated - including ours.  

Reaching over 50% does not mean the job is finished. The bigger our margin, the less room there is for dispute - and the greater the strength we can bring to the current bargaining. 

If you support better pay, manageable workloads and strong workplace protections but haven’t signed yet, please add your support and stand with the thousands of colleagues across the state who are building the pressure to win a fair Agreement. 

SIGN THE PETITION

The IEU is determined to secure a fair deal as quickly as possible, without sacrificing the key improvements staff need. If employers make an acceptable offer in a timely manner, that will be a win delivered by our organising. If they do not, we must be ready to pursue a fairer offer with the bargaining rights available under a SIA. 

Not yet an IEU member? Signing the Petition backs the campaign; joining the IEU makes you part of the collective power that can win the Agreement.

Join the IEU here

In unity 
<<REP NAME>>