Unite for Change: On the road

Sue Collinson with her 40-year IEU membership gift.

The IEU took to the road in May, travelling here, there and everywhere to talk to community preschool teachers and directors about the IEU’s pay rise campaign (see page 1).

The Unite for Change campaign calls for a substantial pay rise for teachers and educators in community-based preschools in NSW.

Not-for-profit, community preschools are run by voluntary parent committees of mums and dads. In most other states, these preschools receive significant state government support for wages, but in NSW they are lagging behind. This means many community preschools are struggling to attract teachers, who are opting to work in schools or government preschools that offer higher pay.

Member Leah Folpp, director at Merriwa Preschool.

The Unite for Change campaign is utilising industrial relations reforms passed by the federal Labor government in 2022 that introduced the supported bargaining stream, which allows individual preschools to bargain together as a group.

During the road trip, IEU organiser Kate Damo visited the Central Coast, Upper Hunter and Newcastle areas to talk to teachers and directors about the campaign.

While Kate visited many preschools, some teachers and directors attended group meetings. One was the Hunter Directors’ Group, organised by Wallsend Preschool director Kylie Gribble, and the other was the Maitland and Districts Preschool Group, organised by East Maitland Preschools business manager Jodie Cox.

Visiting Scone and District Preschool.

The union thanks the directors for inviting us to attend their meetings, enabling us to talk to so many people in one session.

Along the way, Kate presented two loyal preschool directors with small gifts in honour of 40 years of IEU membership.

The union congratulates and thanks Sue Collinson of Macquarie Hills Preschool (see page 14) and Michele Ireland of Medowie Community Preschool.

The IEU is keen to join teacher or director meetings happening in your area. Call us on 8202 8900 and ask to talk to an early childhood organiser or the duty officer; or email ecec@ieu.asn.au