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Firstly, what is an EA?

An Enterprise Agreement is made between employers and their employees, as specified in the agreement. Enterprise agreements are negotiated by the parties through collective bargaining in good faith, primarily at the enterprise level. Under the Fair Work Act 2009, an enterprise can mean any kind of business, activity, project or undertaking.[1]

What does the IEU do for me regarding my school EA?

IEU(SA) collectively bargains with your employer (your school or the system you work in) on your behalf, to create or modify an EA that is then submitted to the Fair Work Commission for final approval.

According to our register, EAs for the following schools have expired, or will expire in 2021.

• • The Hills Montessori School
  • Mt Barker Waldorf School
  • Prescott College
  • Investigator College
  • Pulteney Grammar School
  • Portside Christian College
  • The Hills Christian Community School
  • Horizon Christian School (Wakefield Regional Christian School)
  • Kings Baptist Grammar School
  • Pedare Christian College
  • Westminster School
  • Seymour College
  • Southern Montessori Education Centre
  • Torrens Valley Christian School
  • Harvest Christian College
  • Pilgrim School
  • Tyndale Christian School – Murray Bridge
  • Tyndale Christian School – Salisbury
  • Tyndale Christian School – Strathalbyn
  • Scotch College

This means we need to prepare to bargain on your behalf for what you want included in the new EA.

What might you want in your new EA?

Negotiating an EA means that everything is up for negotiation. On most part, employers and employees are satisfied with the content of the EA and only a few items are discussed. These are mainly: salary, changes to leave (parental leave, other leave as it becomes normalised) and conditions that are difficult to deliver or those that the parties want changed.

Significantly, some employers seek to retain certain employment conditions in local policy. This means that they can change the policy at their whim without engaging or consulting with the employees. The correct place to have conditions directly relevant to your employment is in an EA. Once in the EA, if a change is required then the employees are fully aware of the implications and changes and can initiate meaningful discussions with the employer for the next EA.

If you think about your working conditions, your workload and your work environment, are there any issues, conditions or requirements from the school that you feel need addressing or controlled in a measured way? Are there any issues in your current EA that don’t work for you, or, could be useful additions to your current EA?

If you work in one of the schools listed above, have a chat with your colleagues during a recess or lunch break and see if there are any items worthy of change in your workplace. Note these down and send them through to the IEU via enquires@ieusa.org.au and your school Organiser will make note and follow up. This may involve us sending news, updates and surveys to members in your school to progress the EA bargaining.

Don’t forget, the more IEU members you have in your school, the bigger your collective voice, so be sure to speak with non-members, share this article with them and ask them to join: https://ieusa.org.au/join-the-ieusa/

Comparative EAs

To review what is included in a benchmark school EA, you can view the Catholic and Lutheran EAs in the IEU(SA) Website member area: click here to log in (both EAs are currently in collective bargaining mode so these EAs will be superseded in due course).

[1] https://www.fairwork.gov.au/tools-and-resources/fact-sheets/rights-and-obligations/enterprise-bargaining