In Prince’s song Money Doesn’t Matter Tonight the lyrics state ‘you’re better off making sure your soul’s alright before worrying about money’ which is an inspirational way to live our lives.
However, we need to be on top of our pay and entitlements, such as Long Service Leave, Sick Leave and other entitlements.
We are the best ones to do this. We need to be familiar with our payslip. It is imperative we know what our entitlements are. The best way of doing this is to go onto the IEU’s website, go into your sector and have a detailed look at your enterprise agreement.
School support staff and the IEU have worked tirelessly for current enterprise agreements. As employees, we cannot afford to let our guard down and rely on the technology used by employers to be absolutely accurate. This is not always the case! If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
Many years ago I found this out the hard way. I had taken out a loan and kept checking my payslips for the deduction, but nothing appeared. After three pays, I contacted payroll and found that they had deducted it from another employee with a very similar name.
Obviously, she didn’t check her payslip otherwise she would have questioned it. When rectified, I was limited with money to live on for that pay period, due to the whole sum being deducted. I should have been more diligent and I should have contacted the IEU so this did not happen.
If you find yourself in a quandary about your pay and entitlements, contact your payroll office, and if not satisfied, contact your Union organiser immediately. Don’t sit on it!
Forward any relevant emails to your organiser so they can be armed with your concerns from the ‘get go’. If you are not sure who your organiser is, contact the IEU and they will put you onto the right person.
Plans are underway for another School Support Staff Conference in 2019. I look forward to many of you being able to attend.
It is with deep gratitude I thank you for all your hard work and support and wish you a safe and happy term break. Merry Christmas and a happy New Year.