Update for February 2022 – From IE(SA) Secretary Glen Seidel
February Update:
What a flurry of a start…
SA schools settled for a graduated start to the year. The IEU’s preference would have been to delay all year levels for 2 weeks, and we received good print and radio media coverage of our concerns. However, that was not to be and we are now where we are.
That has meant we did not have the clear time to establish the procedures and protocols for a safe return particularly in the Catholic sector where procedures would be more standardised.
We have sorted the issue of supplying surgical masks as an employer WHS responsibility, but we are still in dispute over the applicability of the “Infectious Diseases” clause in the Catholic sector. The Independent sector advice to schools is that claims should be accepted.
The Catholic EA negotiations are in their second year and the remaining issues are changes to the infectious diseases clause and paid pandemic leave. The employer is baulking at these late claims. Our concerns about asymptomatic school staff who would otherwise be considered “close contacts” have been solved by the introduction of a “Classroom Contact” who can test-and-stay.
The staggered start and attendance of the children of essential workers (etc.) raised the spectre of teachers being asked to teach in “dual mode” i.e. concurrently face-to-face and online or to repeat the Face-to-Face (F2F) lesson online at another time. The government sector was quite clear that this would not occur and our three sectors agreed. The test will be if students won’t or can’t attend and the parents demand online instruction. The government sector is clear on this not being allowed and our schools should follow the model in that aspect too. Those students should be treated the same as any other student who is absent because of illness or holiday.
Schools will just have to say NO!
Never before has the need for elected Health and Safety Reps in each school been more evident. Ventilation “audits” conducted by schools seem to be a tally of rooms with windows without transparency of outcomes. Members are advised to speak with their Organiser as to how to handle local concerns over this or any other WHS concern.
Serendipitously, our new Organiser Matt Blowes is well experienced in WHS matters from his previous union work. Matt is replacing Priscilla Corbell who is currently taking parental leave.
The changes proposed in the Religious Discrimination Bill fortunately did not proceed. The Bill served no proper need as it pretended to protect individuals from discrimination based on their religious beliefs, but at the same time allowed institutions the freedom to discriminate. It has always amazed me that the whole argument of religious belief has revolved around issues of sexuality rather than theology. The Bill was always doomed to not satisfy any side of the debate. It is best that it failed.
With so much happening we need active Sub-branches in each workplace. We need to encourage colleagues old and new to join, for when we speak with one strong voice it carries much more weight.
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Regards
Glen Seidel
Secretary
