IEU is close to finalising the new KU Children’s Services agreement and provided that KU and the Union can agree on the drafting of the agreement it should be sent out for voting in early February.
The agreement provides for 2.5% increases per annum (KU teachers and directors are currently above the majority of the ECS sector), programming time and director’s release time to be increased once the agreement has been approved.
At the conclusion of negotiations KU proposed that jury service be restricted to 20 days and that the length of the agreement be extended to July 2023.
Uniting
Negotiations for a new agreement for staff in Uniting Care Centres will also commence in the first half of this year.
Many locally managed services have now transferred management to Uniting during the past 12 months.
As the Uniting Care agreement covers all employees it is important that teachers and directors have a strong voice in negotiations. IEU will be visiting services in preparation for the negotiations.
Other agreements
The IEU is continuing to roll out agreements for community based services. Many centres are on their third agreement. If you are interested in negotiating an agreement contact your union organiser. The Union will assist in all aspects of the agreement making process.
ERO and award variation
The Union continues to prepare for the upcoming Equal Remuneration Orders (ERO) case which will be heard in the second half of the year. In addition, we have made application to vary the modern award to ensure that non teaching directors are not classified under the Children’s Services Award. Currently the Children’s Services Award provides a classification for directors who have teaching qualifications.
Some employers try and employ teacher/directors under this classification which provides for less pay than under the Educational Services Teachers Award. We are currently preparing witness statements for this case.
Save the date
The annual early childhood teachers conference will be held on 7 September and promises to be an exciting and thought provoking day.
