Most members in NSW Catholic systemic schools will have received pay rises in the last few weeks of Term 4. A few dioceses will pay the increases at the end of December or early January.
Bargaining with the 10 dioceses
The IEU has been negotiating with 10 dioceses (all except Broken Bay, which has negotiated separately) for new enterprise agreements to replace the existing agreements applying to teachers, support staff and principals.
Pay rises
The dioceses have agreed that teachers and principals in NSW Catholic schools will receive the 3% increase gained by their counterparts in NSW government schools, backdated to the first pay period on or after 9 October 2024.
Teachers in ACT schools received pay rises in August this year.
General employees in both NSW and the ACT have received in recent weeks a 4% pay rise backdated to July, reflecting the pay increase for support staff in NSW government schools.
The union expects that the new enterprise agreements will be in place for three years, until October 2027, in line with the term of the award applying to NSW government teachers.
The NSW government settlement included pay rises of 3% in each of October 2024, October 2025 and October 2026. The deal also included a taxable $1000 cost-of-living adjustment, plus superannuation, if inflation exceeds 4.5% in the year to the March quarter, for each year.
Release time
The union has been seeking a reduction in face-to-face teaching time of two hours per week. This has not been agreed in NSW government schools.
However, the NSW government has agreed to eight additional pupil-free days for each year from 2025 until 2027. Four days will be at the start of Term 1, two days at the start of Term 2, one day at the start of Term 3 and one day at the start of Term 4. Four of these days must be reserved to allow teachers to do their own or collaborative planning and preparation, as a measure to address teacher workload.
We have requested that dioceses match these additional days. If this does not occur, additional release must be provided in another form. Dioceses must also move to guarantee regular additional timetabled release time – in many cases schools currently have the flexibility to provide this, but it is at the principal’s discretion.
Workload
The IEU Council has identified key workload issues members face:
- out-of-hours work (both scheduled events and professional duties related to classroom teaching)
- diverse student needs
- data collection and compliance
- meetings and professional development
- extras, and
- class sizes.
The union survey of members at the end of Term 3 identified the same problems. These issues will be addressed in direct negotiations with individual dioceses. The IEU is committed to reducing workload, both in discussions with dioceses and also at the individual school level.
Parental leave
The IEU claim includes the payment of superannuation on paid parental leave. This claim seeks to address the gender pay gap that exists between men and women and is aligned with the federal government’s announcement that it will pay superannuation on government paid parental leave from 1 July 2025.
We are also seeking more flexibility in parental leave for the non-initial primary carer (usually the father) who undertakes the role of primary carer when the initial primary carer (usually the mother) returns to work or study within 24 months (not only 12 months).
This more flexible time period applies in NSW and ACT government schools.
Other claims
Other claims of the union are set out below.
The IEU has also sought an improvement in long service leave for general employees. Access to long service leave (including half pay and short blocks) should also be consistent with the practice for teachers.
The IEU seeks to incorporate existing email clauses in work practice agreements and the new legal right to disconnect provisions as part of the enterprise agreement.
Legally, the new enterprise agreement must include a delegates’ rights clause, which refers to the new rights under the Fair Work Act for union representatives in the workplace.
Finally, we are seeking to broaden the coverage of the enterprise agreement to include employees who work in schools but are not currently covered by an enterprise agreement. These groups include counsellors and other pastoral care staff employed in schools, trade trainers, early childhood education and care and before-and-after-school-care employees, music tutors and business managers.
Employer response
The 10 dioceses have proposed some changes to the NSW and ACT Catholic Schools Enterprise Agreement which they consider would make it easier to understand. The IEU does not oppose simplification, provided members’ rights are protected.
Employers have not yet responded to the union’s key claims.
Next steps
Negotiations are continuing in December, and we hope sufficient progress will be made to allow a new three-year enterprise agreement to be made in Term 1.
We will consult with members early in Term 1 on developments.