Early Childhood Early childhood campaigns reach a critical point
Bargaining for new VECTEA and EEEA agreements has hit a crucial point and the AEU is stepping up its campaign to improve salaries and conditions for early childhood members.
One of our key claims is for a significant increase in educator wages. Wages for educators have fallen below award rates on three occasions, and on 1 April they will be 13% to 35% behind their education support colleagues in schools.
High-quality kindergarten programs depend on qualified staff, who deserve pay and conditions that reflect the important work they do. We’ve launched an online petition calling on Daniel Andrews to fund fair and professional salaries for early childhood educators. Please sign the petition and share it with your colleagues, families and local communities. The more signatures we get, the bigger the impact it will have.
At the same time, we are campaigning at a federal level to secure permanent funding for four-year-old kindergarten. We’re asking members to make contact with your local Coalition Federal MP and invite them into your services or organise a small delegation to visit them at their electoral office. It’s also crucial that members engage in conversations about the campaign with colleagues, families and local communities and draw their attention to the impact it will have on them and their children if the federal government cuts and runs. Parent fees will increase and kindergarten hours could be slashed back to 10 hours per week.
As part of this campaign, we’ve made Preschool Funding Now postcards available at the link below. Please sign and return these postcards to AEU Victoria, 126 Trenerry Crescent, Abbotsford, VIC 3067. The more signed postcards we can deliver to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the bigger the impact.
www.megaphone.org.au/petitions/early-childhood-educators-deserve-respect-and-a-fair-wage
www.aeuvic.asn.au/campaigns/preschool-funding-now
