Stop delaying, St Marys - grant us fair bargaining rights NOW!

We are workers in Victorian Catholic education, and we ask why the VCEA, on behalf of employers, continues to oppose the IEU’s case for fair bargaining rights.

More than 19,000 staff have already signed a Statement of Support backing a Single Interest Authorisation. It is deeply unjust that we remain the only large cohort of education workers in Australia denied the basic bargaining rights that others take for granted.

The VCEA could agree to a Single Interest Authorisation now. Instead, the process is being prolonged, with further roadblocks placed in the way — and no reasonable explanation has been provided for this opposition.

At a time when workforce shortages and cost-of-living pressures are affecting staff across our schools, employers should be focused on supporting and retaining their workforce — not denying our industrial rights. By continuing this approach, the VCEA is ignoring the clearly expressed will of the majority of the workforce.

We call on the VCEA to stop the delay, support the Single Interest Authorisation immediately, and allow fair bargaining to proceed for an Agreement that genuinely respects the 35,000 staff employed in Victorian Catholic education.