VOTE NO TO CRISAFULLI'S BELOW-INFLATION OFFERS, VOTE YES TO STRIKE ACTION! FIGHT FOR 30% AND CONCRETE WORKLOAD REDUCTION
In light of the Crisafulli Government’s appalling offer to state school teachers of 8% over 3 years with zero concrete measures to address workload, the QTU Executive have rightfully rejected the offer and called for a public rally in protest. While we welcome these responses--actions QLD Teachers Fightback have long been arguing for--and are encouraged by the Executive’s talk of balloting members for 24-hour industrial action, we believe the fight needs to go much further.
Teachers cannot afford to have this dragged out. We need to take a leaf out of the nurses’ book who rejected an 8% offer, then rejected an 11% offer, and have overwhelmingly voted to take industrial action. For too long, members’ support for industrial action has fallen on deaf ears. The time to fight is now, and decisively.
Additionally, the hundreds of motions from QTU members calling for specific demands to address the crisis in education have been diluted in favour of “interest-based bargaining”. Members are confused as to what exactly we are fighting for. The strategy of seeking “common interests” around pay and conditions with the Department has utterly failed. Our wages have gone backwards by 6.5% over last three years, and we achieved no workload reduction. These were a direct result of “interest-based bargaining”.
We need between 20-30% to close the pay gap between us and other professions. There has so far been NO concrete workload reduction measures for all teachers in either the formal offer or the “Red Tape Reduction”. Say NO to whatever crumbs the government throws our way. We need to strike for what we are worth and the time to strike is now.
Teachers cannot afford to have this dragged out. We need to take a leaf out of the nurses’ book who rejected an 8% offer, then rejected an 11% offer, and have overwhelmingly voted to take industrial action. For too long, members’ support for industrial action has fallen on deaf ears. The time to fight is now, and decisively.
Additionally, the hundreds of motions from QTU members calling for specific demands to address the crisis in education have been diluted in favour of “interest-based bargaining”. Members are confused as to what exactly we are fighting for. The strategy of seeking “common interests” around pay and conditions with the Department has utterly failed. Our wages have gone backwards by 6.5% over last three years, and we achieved no workload reduction. These were a direct result of “interest-based bargaining”.
We need between 20-30% to close the pay gap between us and other professions. There has so far been NO concrete workload reduction measures for all teachers in either the formal offer or the “Red Tape Reduction”. Say NO to whatever crumbs the government throws our way. We need to strike for what we are worth and the time to strike is now.
Next steps:
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