19,08,26 | Industrial advice
New federal reforms to prevent Australians under 16 from creating or maintaining accounts on age-restricted social media platforms have generated understandable concern among schools, teachers and support staff, particularly about whether educators are expected to...
14,08,26 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
In schools across Australia, the conversation around safety has broadened, as Rachel Drew from Thomsons writes. No longer confined to physical risks, slippery floors, faulty wiring or playground falls, school safety now squarely includes psychosocial hazards: the...
14,08,26 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Members are reminded to contact our union first when subject to allegations of wrongdoing in the workplace. IEU-QNT Industrial Officer Mark Moorhead said facing allegations of wrongdoing can be distressing, but our union has experience supporting members through these...
14,08,26 | Industrial advice, Union win, Workers' rights
A troubling incident where staff were recently directed by their employer to sign a broad declaration that they had not engaged in “misconduct”, with no explanation for the request, is a timely reminder to pause and think before signing any legal documents. During...
10,08,26 | Equity, Industrial advice, Union win, Workers' rights
Our union has successfully secured the correction of IEU members’ pay after personal leave was incorrectly deducted by a Queensland school. The case highlighted the importance of members checking their payslips and seeking union support when something goes wrong....
04,08,26 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Our union has welcomed the announcement of an independent review into workplace culture at Marist College Ashgrove, following ongoing reports of harassment and sexualised behaviour at the school. Prior to the announcement, our union had publicly called for an external...
04,08,26 | Industrial advice, Member benefits, Union win, Workers' rights
An IEU teacher member employed in a Queensland Catholic school has now received over $11,000 in backpay after our union intervened following employer delays. The member started working at the school in mid-2025 and after noticing a possible underpayment in relation to...
04,08,26 | Industrial advice, Union win, Workers' rights
Our union’s support of a member has resulted in their employer withdrawing a formal written warning and a deficient performance improvement plan (PIP) being discontinued after we raised concerns regarding the need for and deployment of a performance management...
16,07,26 | Industrial advice
Australia is home to more than a million surveillance cameras. Video surveillance in public spaces, shops, eateries and residential perimeters is widely accepted as a way to promote public safety. But what about surveillance inside classrooms, staffrooms and...
05,06,26 | Industrial advice, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Risk assessments are becoming a day-to-day part of any modern school and should be considered vital in protecting the health and wellbeing both students and members in their workplace. While risk assessments are most visible when looking at the planning of excursions,...
22,04,26 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Having your work performance called into question is never easy, but it is important to remember you have rights throughout the performance management process. IEU-QNT Industrial Officer Mark Moorhead said a performance management process (sometimes known as a...
03,03,26 | Industrial advice, Students
A new reportable conduct scheme will take effect in all applicable Queensland organisations, including schools, from 1 July 2026. The scheme follows the commencement of the Child Safe Organisations Act 2024, introduced by the Queensland government. This scheme is part...
27,10,25 | Industrial advice, Member benefits, Union win, Workers' rights
Our union has secured $1,121,491 in payments and settlements for members over the past 12 months. The diligent work of the IEU industrial team in upholding members’ rights at work made all the difference across a range of key cases, including: $60,000 in a pre-court...
21,10,25 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
At this time of year, our union unfortunately fields some member queries on how to navigate situations involving restructure and/or redundancy. A restructure or redundancy can be daunting for those involved and our union is here to support members through the process....
21,10,25 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
The misuse of fixed-term contracts has historically been a major issue in the non-government education sector, locking teachers and school support staff into futures of uncertainty and stress. Throughout Term 4 each year, our union often fields enquiries from IEU...
04,08,25 | Industrial advice, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
IEU members would be aware that two Queensland Lutheran schools have recently been subject to scrutiny and media attention for reportedly mishandling incidents of AI-generated image-based sexual abuse perpetrated by students. It comes as new data from the Office of...
10,07,25 | Industrial advice, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has urged schools to report deepfakes and incidents of AI-generated image-based abuse to the appropriate authorities. It comes as the rapid proliferation of ‘nudify’ apps takes a growing toll on school communities. To...
24,06,25 | Industrial advice
Our union rectified a member’s pay dispute in less than 24 hours, after the employer had previously failed to resolve the issue for weeks. The issue related to the length, timing and payment of personal (sick) leave and long service leave (LSL), with portions of leave...
01,04,25 | Industrial advice, Union win
Our union’s support has resulted in a school officer being reclassified and receiving back pay after their employer wrongfully lowered the classification level of their role. The school officer member employed in a Queensland Catholic school contacted our union for...
27,02,25 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
The federal Albanese government’s new worker-friendly laws, combined with our union’s strong interventions, are ensuring that employer rejection of requests for flexible work arrangements can no longer be based on weak and insubstantial reasons. The Secure Jobs,...
02,05,24 | Industrial advice
Ipswich Girls Grammar School (IGGS) is seeking to force through an employer agreement already rejected by employees while staff are voting on whether to take protected industrial action. The employer agreement, as it stands, fails to address key employee issues,...
06,02,24 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Toowoomba Catholic Education and Downlands College have sought leave from the High Court of Australia to appeal against last year’s Federal Court decision that two former teachers were entitled to pay increases contained in new collective agreements despite resigning...
14,11,23 | Collective bargaining, Industrial advice, Union win
A full bench of Federal Court judges has ruled two Queensland Catholic school teachers are entitled to pay rises secured by new collective agreements despite the employees resigning before the replacement agreements took effect. IEU-QNT Branch Secretary Terry Burke...
31,10,23 | Industrial advice, Union win
Our union’s expert advice and support has helped two members secure successful WorkCover claims for work-related psychological injuries. IEU-QNT Industrial Officer Nick Sahlqvist said the recent cases reinforced the importance of contacting our union as early as...
31,10,23 | Industrial advice, Member action, School support staff
Our union has helped a school officer secure continuing employment status after experiencing 12 years of rolling fixed-term contracts. IEU-QNT Industrial Services Officer Mark Moorhead said our union requested that the member be granted continuing status after more...
31,10,23 | Industrial advice, Union win
An IEU member has recently received over $80,000 in backpay after receiving support from our union. IEU-QNT Industrial Services Officer Mark Moorhead said the member was working at school in Brisbane and contacted our union after several years of working more hours...
25,10,23 | Industrial advice
As we begin what will likely be a very hot summer season, IEU members should check whether they have access to natural disaster leave provisions in their collective agreement to be prepared for extreme weather events. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has declared that...
10,10,23 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Our union has seen an increase in the frequency of non-compete clauses in employment contracts. In a worrying trend, IEU-QNT Industrial Services Officer Melanie Stellmacher says employers across all sectors were increasingly using restraint-of-trade, otherwise known...
09,08,23 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Our union’s support has helped a member transition to retirement after their employer gave them incorrect advice. The member was interested in a reduction from five to three working days per week as part of a transition to retirement, as they are entitled to under...
07,08,23 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Retirement from the workforce marks an exciting and significant milestone in a worker’s lifetime, and our union is here to support members through the process. Before deciding to transition to retirement, members should carefully consider their preferred timeframes,...
07,06,23 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Our union’s advocacy has led to an employer quickly withdrawing their direction for an IEU member to undergo an independent medical examination (IME) as part of their return to work. Industrial Services Officer Melanie Stellmacher said several recent industrial cases...
30,03,23 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
The responsibility for schools to provide a psychologically safe workplace for employees may expand following the publication of Safe Work Australia’s new model code of practice Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work, as Rachel Drew and Aiyana O’Meara from Holding...
07,12,22 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Starting a new job comes with dozens of small admin tasks that can slip through the cracks but could have lasting implications if not rectified, such as forgetting to let your employer know about any prior qualifications or professional experience. Under most...
22,11,22 | Industrial advice, Union win
An IEU member has secured more than $13,000 in back pay and is now correctly classified after our union’s intervention with the employer. The Queensland-based teacher member contacted our union for assistance after suspecting they were incorrectly classified and being...
19,11,21 | Equity, Industrial advice, Workers' rights
The new Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Act 2021 (the Act) aims to combat the prevalence of sexual harassment in Australia by clarifying and simplifying sexual harassment laws and encouraging meaningful cultural change in workplaces, as...
