14,10,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
The absence of disputes regarding the right to disconnect laws, one year after they came into effect, indicates the legislation is functioning as intended and benefiting Australian workers. Analysis by the Centre for Future Work has found that since right to...
09,09,25 | Workers' rights
This week marked one year since Queensland’s Respect at Work amendments passed through parliament, yet they still await implementation due to delays by the Crisafulli government. On 10 September 2024, the Respect at Work and Other Matters Amendment Act was passed. ...
04,09,25 | Workers' rights, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
The federal government’s proposed ban on artificial intelligence (AI) apps used to produce explicit deepfake images has been welcomed by our union as an important step towards safer schools and workplaces. The federal government’s move comes as reports to the Office...
04,09,25 | Workers' rights
University of Technology Sydney’s (UTS) plan to slash 400 jobs and freeze student intake for more than 100 courses has been condemned by education unions across Australia. The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) said UTS had pushed forward with the job cuts...
04,09,25 | Workers' rights
The Trump administration has stripped collective bargaining rights from approximately one million public sector workers in the United States. President Trump recently issued an executive order denying bargaining rights to workers at a swathe of government agencies...
04,09,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
It pays to check as one IEU member recently discovered after a conversation with their organiser led to a reclassification and $11,000 in backpay. After speaking with their IEU Organiser, a teacher member in the Queensland Catholic sector realised an incorrect...
12,08,25 | Workers' rights
A new Productivity Commission report has rejected the need for economy-wide regulation of artificial intelligence (AI), effectively selling out Australian workers and their industries. he Productivity Commission report suggests relaxing copyright protections,...
12,08,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
An IEU member received $8,000 in backpay after our union prevailed in a classification dispute in the magistrate’s court. The member was employed as a casual teacher during term-time at a special assistance school when they later realised they had been appointed at...
12,08,25 | Workers' rights
A member has avoided an employer’s attempt to schedule an unpaid induction day following support from our union’s industrial team. The member was moving between employers in the non-government sector when their new employer told them that a day of unpaid induction,...
29,07,25 | Workers' rights
Young workers are being exploited by employers at alarming rates, according to a new study from the University of Melbourne. A survey of 2,814 young workers underpinned the study, finding that one-third were paid $15 an hour or less – far below the minimum wage....
29,07,25 | Workers' rights
A Bill to protect penalty rates for 2.6 million award-reliant workers has been introduced in parliament by the federal government. he proposed legislation introduced by the Albanese federal government would prevent penalty and overtime rates from being varied or...
18,06,25 | Equity, Workers' rights
Our union has condemned the Northern Territory (NT) government’s plans to restore the right of faith-based schools to discriminate against staff and students. IEU-QNT Branch Secretary Terry Burke said the current NT CLP government’s decision to reinstate the religious...
03,06,25 | Workers' rights
More than 260 higher education jobs will be cut as part of a proposed restructure at the University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ). The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) said the move will force just under 20% of the university’s workforce out of work. ...
13,05,25 | Collective bargaining, Workers' rights
Burger chain Grill’d has had its undercooked 1% pay offer thrown out by the Fair Work Commission (FWC). Following a challenge by unions in the sector, the commission agreed the proposed collective agreement was poorly explained and painted a “rosy picture” of wage...
13,05,25 | Equity, Workers' rights
Wages in certain industries have been historically undervalued based on gender, according to a landmark Fair Work Commission (FWC) decision. Using laws introduced by the Albanese government in 2022, the FWC will seek to lift minimum rates of pay for a wide range of...
13,05,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
A recent Fair Work Commission (FWC) case won on appeal by an IEU member in New South Wales has reinforced an aspect of an employee’s right to access flexible work. Due to amendments to the Fair Work Act introduced under the 2023 Secure Jobs, Better Pay reforms,...
06,05,25 | Member action, Workers' rights
IEU members and their families joined Labour Day and May Day celebrations in significant numbers across Queensland and the Northern Territory. Events were held during the long weekend of 3-5 May in Alice Springs, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, the Gold Coast, Toowoomba and...
03,04,25 | Teachers, Workers' rights
A threat to sack thousands of school staff, claims students are being “indoctrinated” and a touted takeover of the national curriculum – this is how the Coalition has opened its federal election campaign. IEU Federal Secretary Brad Hayes said IEU members and families...
28,03,25 | Workers' rights
The past three years have brought the most significant improvements to rights at work in more than a decade. These new rights have made a difference to IEU members’ working lives and have delivered higher wages, more secure jobs, the right to disconnect, more balanced...
25,03,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
Our union has helped secure a job-share arrangement for a member employed in a Queensland Lutheran school, reinforcing flexible working arrangements as a good option for employers to retain staff while assisting employees to achieve a better work/life balance. The...
12,03,25 | Workers' rights
The Australian Council of Trade Unions has condemned federal opposition leader Peter Dutton’s threat to axe 36,000 public service jobs. In a move mimicking billionaire Elon Musk’s purge of the American public service, Dutton announced his plan to save $6 billion...
10,03,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
There are 230,000 more workers in secure jobs due to the Albanese Labour government’s industrial relations (IR) law reform. This includes our members in the non-government education sector. Nine in 10 of all jobs created during this term of government have been...
04,03,25 | Equity, Workers' rights
Our union has condemned the NT government’s plans to reverse changes to the Anti-Discrimination Act passed by the previous Labor government. Changes to the NT Anti-Discrimination Act made three years ago removed the religious discrimination exemptions that allowed...
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,...
27,02,25 | Union win, Workers' rights
An IEU member recouped a near $2,000 underpayment upon resignation by taking one crucial action. After deciding to leave their teaching role with a major non-government school employer, the member provided a copy of their final payslip to our union. The IEU...
24,02,25 | Workers' rights
Union members in non-government education have a deep and lasting connection to Labour Day in Queensland and May Day in the Northern Territory, as Assistant Secretary/Treasurer Rebecca Sisson writes. For more than a century, as part of antecedent unions of the...
17,02,25 | Workers' rights
Education International (EI), the peak body of education unions globally, has outlined its vision for promoting quality education, addressing climate change challenges and elevating the status of the profession. EI leaders met in Brussels last November to confirm...
11,02,25 | Collective bargaining, Member benefits, Union win, Workers' rights
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has confirmed the number of Australian union members is rising as workers experience higher wages and a five-year high in collective agreements. Union membership has surged by an impressive 12.3% over the past two years, marking...
10,02,25 | Workers' rights
Consider being locked out of your workplace indefinitely because some workers participated in just one work stoppage. That is the harsh reality facing 302 workers at Opal’s Maryvale paper mill in the Latrobe Valley. Opal’s unprecedented action has reignited calls...
30,01,25 | Workers' rights
Australia’s largest retailers are attempting to scrap overtime and penalty rates in a ruthless attack on some of the country’s lowest-paid workers. Coles, Woolworths, Kmart and Costco are backing an application by the Australian Retailers’ Association in the Fair...
29,11,24 | Superannuation, Workers' rights
The true purpose of superannuation has been safeguarded, following the passage of the Superannuation (Objective) Bill 2023 through the Senate yesterday. The move protects workers’ retirements by confirming superannuation is a workplace right, preserved until...
28,11,24 | Professional issues, Workers' rights, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Our union has welcomed a raft of recommendations outlined in a new report by the Senate Select Committee on Adopting Artificial Intelligence. The recommendations focus on protecting the rights of working people amidst widescale adoption of AI in a variety of...
19,11,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
Our union has successfully resolved a dispute with the Queensland Lutheran schools employing authority over IEU delegates’ right to communicate with staff. Lutheran Education Queensland (LEQ) refused to allow IEU delegates to communicate with all staff via email and...
30,10,24 | Workers' rights
Howard-era WorkChoices reforms “did not go far enough” in the eyes of an influential mining boss. Chief Executive of the Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association (AREEA), Steve Knott addressed the HR Nicholls Society in Melbourne recently, arguing the...
23,10,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
A Federal Court judge has ruled that Qantas must pay compensation to 1700 former ground staff who lost their jobs after the airline unlawfully outsourced the roles in November 2020. The decision is a victory for union members after a lengthy and arduous legal battle...
22,10,24 | Workers' rights
Abolishing junior wage rates and ensuring superannuation is paid on every dollar earned are essential to level the playing field for young workers. Australian Unions have accelerated their campaign to protect young workers, releasing a new youth justice policy agenda....
22,10,24 | Workers' rights
Our union has secured an enhanced redundancy for a specialist teacher, enabled by new fixed-term contract laws. When the member’s employer proposed making their specialist teaching role redundant, it argued the redundancy would be based on the position’s initial...
03,10,24 | Collective bargaining, Workers' rights
Pay rises have hit a 12-year high with union-negotiated increases outpacing non-union deals. Private sector pay increases are averaging 3%, the highest level since 2012, while union-negotiated wage increases are tracking higher at 4%, according to Department of...
02,10,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
Victim-survivors of workplace sexual harassment in Australia will now be able to seek justice more easily and pursue legal action against perpetrators without fear of financial ruin, thanks to new federal legislation fought for by unions. The federal government’s...
03,09,24 | Workers' rights
Our union has welcomed the federal government’s action to strengthen protections against the non-consensual sharing of sexually explicit material, including AI-generated deepfakes, following an increase in image-based abuse targeting school staff and students. The...
27,08,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
New laws allowing employees the right to disconnect from work are the latest in a suite of improvements to Australian workplace laws achieved through the union movement’s advocacy. IEU-QNT Branch Secretary Terry Burke said as of today, school staff will no longer be...
27,08,24 | Collective bargaining, Workers' rights
Lutheran Education Queensland (LEQ) employers continue to ignore the voice of members and maintain a bargaining position that puts employees’ wages, workload and working conditions in last place. IEU-QNT Organiser Andrew Elphinstone said LEQ maintained the current...
18,06,24 | Equity, Workers' rights
The Independent Education Union—Queensland and Northern Territory (IEU-QNT) Branch has expressed deep disappointment over the failure to remove religious discrimination exemptions for faith-based schools in the revised Queensland Anti-Discrimination Act. IEU-QNT...
04,06,24 | Workers' rights
Teachers and school support staff at Ipswich Girls’ Grammar School (IGGS) and Ipswich Junior Grammar School (IJGS) took the first strike action in the school’s history on Tuesday, 4 June 202 as they continued their campaign for better working conditions. IEU members...
04,06,24 | Workers' rights
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) welcomes the Fair Work Commission’s (FWC) decision today to increase minimum and award wages by 3.75%, which will deliver a real wage increase for 2.6 million workers. The above-inflation pay rise means a full-time worker...
03,06,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
After denying underpaying staff for two years, Deakin University has admitted to engaging in multi-million dollar wage theft. The Victorian-based university revealed the underpayments in an email to staff, which the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) estimates...
15,05,24 | Workers' rights
IEU members across Queensland and the Northern Territory have celebrated the difference collective solidarity makes, rallying in their thousands as part of Labour Day and May Day celebrations during the 4-6 May long weekend. Members united at celebrations held in...
02,05,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
IEU members will have an even greater voice at work thanks to new workplace delegate provisions in the Fair Work Act. IEU-QNT Assistant Secretary/Treasurer Paul Giles said the changes to the Act ensure new workplace rights and protections for union delegates. ...
01,05,24 | Union win, Workers' rights
Our union’s Industrial Team has recently achieved significant wins for members, including challenging an unfair dismissal, defending a member against untrue allegations, and maintaining accommodation entitlements. IEU-QNT Industrial Officer Melanie Stellmacher said...
01,05,24 | Member action, Workers' rights
IEU members across Queensland and the Northern Territory are set to celebrate the difference collective solidarity makes as part of Labour Day and May Day celebrations this coming long weekend (4-6 May). IEU-QNT Assistant Secretary Rebecca Sisson said each year, the...
