16,03,22 | Workers' rights
When floodwaters inundated vast areas of South East Queensland last month thousands of Queenslanders faced devastating impacts. For IEU members, access to paid natural disaster leave provided crucial support during stressful and challenging circumstances. As...
16,03,22 | Workers' rights
The number of Australians who need more than one job to make ends meet – which had already been at a record high – has climbed even higher according to new data released this morning by the ABS. The number of secondary jobs now sits at 954,000, up from the previous...
16,03,22 | Early childhood, Workers' rights
IEU members in the early childhood education sector need to be on alert, after multiple employers have tried to, and in some cases succeeded in, removing important working rights from collective agreements, particularly redundancy payment provisions. IEU Organiser...
03,03,22 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Flooding and severe weather in South East Queensland continue to pose a significant threat to community safety. Dozens of schools from northern Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast, Wide Bay and Bundaberg areas have today been advised to have students collected by parents....
01,03,22 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
Our union filed an urgent dispute late last night with the industrial umpire – the Fair Work Commission (FWC) – over Brisbane Catholic Education’s decision to reopen the majority of schools today Tuesday, 1 March 2022. IEU Chapters should meet urgently today to...
27,02,22 | Industrial advice, Workers' rights
The Queensland Government has made the decision to close all state schools across Metropolitan Brisbane and the South East as well as some schools in the North Coast and Darling Downs South West regions due to the flood situation. The schools are those that fall into...
23,02,22 | COVID-19, Workers' rights
The aged care and disability sectors need urgent support from the federal government through appropriate remuneration as well as better access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and RATs (Rapid Antigen Tests), so that the essential services the sectors provide can...
22,02,22 | Member action, School support staff, Workers' rights
Northern Territory Catholic school members remain locked in a dispute with their employer who has failed to pay staff their public holidays loadings for many years. IEU members employed as boarding school staff at St John’s Catholic School (Darwin) contacted our union...
22,02,22 | COVID-19, Member action, Workers' rights
Our union is calling on school employers to provide immediate access to paid pandemic leave for staff who test positive to COVID-19 or are exposed to the virus and required to comply with public health directives. Unfortunately, employers in the non-government...
18,02,22 | Union win, Workers' rights
The New South Wales Transport Workers Union (TWU) won a landmark decision today that will see couriers receive enforceable pay rises between 36 and 46 per cent over three years and further protections – including for Amazon flex drivers in a world first. The TWU led...
31,01,22 | COVID-19, Workers' rights
Our union welcomes the safe return to school plan announced by Education Minister Grace Grace, which will set the parameters and act as a reference point for non-government education employers. IEU-QNT Branch Secretary Terry Burke said the plan will provide clarity...
14,01,22 | COVID-19, Workers' rights
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has condemned, in the strongest possible terms, the Prime Minister’s failure at National Cabinet yesterday (13 January) to ensure Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) be made free and accessible for all; to protect worker and...
02,12,21 | Professional issues, Workers' rights
Alarming new research confirms what our union has long campaigned against; the substantial difficulties teachers on contracts face due to their insecure employment status, as Emily Campbell writes. A recent survey of 18,000 members of the NSW Teachers’ Federation...
19,11,21 | Workers' rights
Despite rising levels of insecure work, Australians working multiple jobs to survive and collective bargaining legislation that continues to provide employers with the balance of power, the current federal government shows little intention to consider industrial...
19,11,21 | Equity, Workers' rights
The federal government has missed a landmark opportunity to address workplace harassment following the passage of its watered-down Respect@Work legislation. The legislation formed part of the government’s response to the Human Rights Commission’s 2020 Respect@Work...
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...
19,11,21 | Workers' rights
The Australian super system is, at its heart, an enduring victory for workers, something the current federal government has done its best to undermine. The current federal government’s controversial Your Super, Your Future bill, which passed the Senate in June of this...
18,11,21 | Professional issues, Workers' rights
Information overload was a buzz phrase before the internet, before messaging, the 24/7 news cycle, social media, analytics, keyboard tracking, UX design, LinkedIn,and PowerPoint. But it’s a reality here and now for teachers, writes Will Brodie. Coined in 1964 and...
17,11,21 | Equity, Professional issues, Workers' rights
IEU submission calls for affordable access to childcare; measures to counter the sustained prevalence of discrimination and gendered violence in communities and workplaces; and addressing women’s particular vulnerability to social and economic hardship. IEU-QNT Branch...
03,11,21 | Equity, Workers' rights
Image credit: Nils Versemann / Shutterstock.com A new law requiring Australian voting to show ID on election day is unjustified and could create barriers to voting for some of our most marginalised in the community. IEU Branch Secretary Terry Burke said the federal...
03,11,21 | Superannuation, Workers' rights
3 million Australian workers have had $5 billion in superannuation stolen by employers according to a recently released Industry Super Australia report. Young workers and low-income earners experience the highest rates of theft; a third of those under 30 are underpaid...
14,10,21 | Workers' rights
All workers have a right to be safe at work, not just from physical injuries but also from work-related psychological injuries and poor mental health. Mental health continues to be the fastest growing challenge to the safety of working people in their workplaces...
14,10,21 | Union win, Workers' rights
More workers are eligible to convert from casual to ongoing employment following legislative changes made in the wake of a union campaign for secure jobs. Recent changes to the Fair Work Act mean employers (with more than 15 employees) are now required to consider...
15,09,21 | Member action, Workers' rights
The action taken by IEU members to secure paid pandemic leave in many of our workplaces has made a crucial difference during this health crisis. The pandemic has placed significant stress on all school staff, making access to paid leave critical when it comes to some...
14,09,21 | Professional issues, Workers' rights
Over the past ten years, school leaders have faced an increasing rate of bullying, physical violence, threats of violence, slander, sexual and verbal harassment. The Australian Principal Occupation Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey (2020) revealed that 2020 was a...
14,09,21 | Workers' rights
Job security is intrinsically linked to workers’ wellbeing, yet the rate of secure employment continues to decline. Today, more than one in four Australian workers are in some form of insecure employment. This is a significant turnaround considering Australia used to...
14,09,21 | Equity, Workers' rights
The federal government has missed a landmark opportunity to address workplace harassment following the passage of its watered-down Respect@Work legislation. The legislation formed part of the government’s response to the Human Rights Commission’s 2020 Respect@Work...
14,09,21 | Union win, Workers' rights
After facing two unlawful lockouts, McCain workers in Tasmania have secured a major win on their wages and conditions. The new in-principle agreement secured by members of the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) will see working conditions for factory...
03,09,21 | Teachers, Workers' rights
Northern Territory members are invited to participate in a project conducted by Charles Darwin University researchers on the effects of violent student behaviours on teacher wellbeing. The aim of the research is to contribute to, and better, current teacher...
25,08,21 | COVID-19, Workers' rights
Despite millions of Australians in lockdown due the Federal Government’s failed vaccination rollout, Scott Morrison and his government are continuing to reject calls to make paid vaccine leave available to all workers. The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is...
25,08,21 | COVID-19, Member action, Union win, Workers' rights
IEU member action has played a key role in securing priority vaccinations for education workers in Queensland. The announcement made by the state government earlier in the month came after repeated calls for the priority vaccination of education workers by our union...
24,08,21 | Workers' rights
Penalties of $170,000 have been imposed on the owners of Café 63 following an investigation into wage theft that included paying staff in food and drink. The wage theft related to the underpayment of 33 employees in 2017 and 2018 – largely visa holders who were...
24,08,21 | Member action, Union win, Workers' rights
An attempt by Blackheath and Thornburgh College to revoke their redundancy payments for staff has been rejected in the Fair Work Commission (FWC) thanks to IEU member action. A 2020 decision by the employer to outsource catering services resulted in three IEU services...
21,07,21 | Equity, Workers' rights
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is again calling on the Prime Minister Scott Morrison to act on all 55 recommendations of the 2020 Respect@Work report rather than ignoring key elements which would create safer workplaces for women. More than 18 months...
21,07,21 | COVID-19, Workers' rights
Australia’s perilously delayed COVID-19 vaccine rollout is placing significant pressure on schools and the wellbeing of students and staff. Our union believes all employees deserve access to paid leave for COVID-19 vaccination as part of a shared commitment to keeping...
20,07,21 | Workers' rights
IEU-QNT members employed in Northern Territory Catholic schools are outraged and concerned at the prospect of facing a wage freeze, which will have major financial implications for staff working in the sector. During a recent bargaining meeting to negotiate a...
22,06,21 | Beginning Educators (BEnet), Teachers, Workers' rights
Excessive demands placed on early-career teachers have damaging, long-term impacts on their classroom management according to a new Australian study, writes IE journalist Jessica Willis. The study surveyed 395 teachers on how their workload, school resources and...
17,06,21 | Member action, Superannuation, Workers' rights
The federal government’s controversial Your Super, Your Future bill passed the Senate today with support from the crossbench, despite significant concerns from workers in industry funds about the consequences of the new laws. The government purports the new laws will...
17,06,21 | Member action, Union win, Workers' rights
Our union, through its federal body, the IEUA, has continued its longstanding support of the developing country of Timor-Leste, recently donating funds through Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA to the Strengthening and Supporting Rural Farmers Organisations project in the...
17,06,21 | Equity, Workers' rights
The federal government will introduce a significant overhaul to Medicare rebates from 1 July and expose Australians to unexpected out-of-pocket medical costs. In the biggest shake-up to Medicare in a decade, more than 900 changes will be made to the Medicare Benefits...
17,06,21 | Member action, Workers' rights
While the Australian union movement continues its lengthy history of campaigning against unsafe and unhealthy working conditions, sadly, many workers across different industries are still subjected to a range of health and safety risks. As a result, new Australian...
17,06,21 | Industrial advice, Member action, Workers' rights
Queensland Catholic school members will now have a refined unsatisfactory performance management process after our union met with the employers over reports ‘informal chats’ were being used to start formal unsatisfactory performance management procedures. Members have...
27,05,21 | Member action, School support staff, Workers' rights
In an outrageous instance of fixed-term contract misuse, our union has been made aware of a Northern Territory Catholic employer hiring school officers on contracts which are described as being just 14 days in length. IEU members raised the issue with our union after...
27,05,21 | Member action, Workers' rights
IEU-QNT members are continuing the fight against the insidious nature of insecure work by taking action to prevent the misuse of fixed-term contracts in their workplaces. It comes as The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) called for Australia to commit to...
27,05,21 | Workers' rights
The working conditions of instrumental music instructors across Queensland continue to be left in a state of uncertainty thanks to employer inaction. These non-teaching registered employees work alongside school music directors and teachers to provide on-site...
27,05,21 | Teachers, Workers' rights
Our union is calling for school employers and leadership teams to ensure there are clear policies and expectations of parents and/or carers when engaging with school staff through online meetings. The call is in response to growing reports from School Chapters...
27,05,21 | Workers' rights, Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Workers’ mental health has received historic recognition, following a move to regulate psychosocial hazards under national workplace health and safety (WHS) laws. The decision from state and federal WHS ministers to support federal regulation will enshrine a legal...
27,05,21 | Union win, Workers' rights
Pressure from the First Nations Workers Alliance (FNWA) and the broader union movement has seen the federal government scrap the harmful Community Development Program (CDP). The CDP is currently a work-for-the-dole program which sees individuals in remote Australian...
20,05,21 | Member action, Workers' rights
Our union, along with our colleague education unions nationally, stands in solidarity with students who are taking part in the upcoming School Strike 4 Climate on Friday, 21 May 2021. IEU-QNT Secretary Terry Burke commended students participating in the movement and...
12,05,21 | COVID-19, Early childhood, Workers' rights
The federal government’s $1.6 billion funding commitment for early childhood education over the next four years is a start, but more is required to secure the future of the sector. IEU-QNT Senior Industrial Officer John Spriggs said although the Budget contained some...
