The independent teacher’s union has slammed Catholic Education for its “biggest attack in 20 years on Catholic school teachers”, following recent strike action by Logan teachers.
Local catholic school teachers recently took strike action at five Logan schools, protesting the “workload crisis” and “outdated and unfair” wage rates for support staff.
Around 4000 union members from over 100 Catholic schools across the state also joined the strike.
The Queensland Catholic School Education Commission made an enterprise bargaining offer to provide 8.75 per cent increase in payments to employees, including wage and superannuation increases as well as cost of living measures.
Now, Independent Education Union – Queensland and Northern Territory (IEU-QNT) branch secretary, Terry Burke, said Queensland Catholic school employers were seeking to ballot employees on a document that “cuts many long-held working conditions”.
These cuts include reducing the ability for school staff to address workplace harassment and workplace stress issues with the school – instead they will need to take claims directly to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) or Anti-Discrimination Commission, and the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC).
The cuts will also affect replacements for support staff when on leave and absent for more than five hours, meaning some teachers could be left without essential support for high-needs students.
“Members took the strike action because the employers had failed to hear their voice on the critical matters currently faced by teachers and school support staff in Catholic schools,” Mr Burke said.
“Now, not only do the Catholic employers want to close their ears to the problems but their response has been to seek to punish staff with an agreement that actively cuts working conditions.
“It’s an unprecedented and genuinely shameful move by Queensland Catholic school employers.
“We are not aware of any other Catholic school employer in Australia taking such punitive action against their staff by seeking to strip current working conditions.”
Mr Burke said employers were telling their staff they would “not receive any back pay unless they vote ‘yes’ to the proposed document.”
“Such threats and intimidation are rarely seen in the corporate sector – let alone by Catholic Church employers,” he said.
A spokesman for the Queensland Catholic Education Commission said the 8.75 per cent wage-increase offer was made early in the enterprise bargaining negotiations, which he said began last November.
“Employees have been asking employers to arrange the vote as they want to obtain the benefits that have been offered as soon as possible,” he said,
“Employers expect to go to an employee vote in early September.
“It is unclear why the IEU-QNT continue to refer to pursuing a claim for increased school officer wages as the union confirmed in writing during negotiations its “position tabled was withdrawn.”
He said employers have previously raised concerns with the union about misrepresenting the status of negotiations in their communications encouraging members to take action.
