TAFE & Adult Provision RMIT and Swinburne negotiations update
Negotiations for the Swinburne University of Technology – Pathways and Vocational Education Agreement (PAVE) commenced in early 2021 but subsequently stalled. The AEU and the NTEU both applied to the Fair Work Commission for Protected Action Ballot Orders, granted in early September, with members commencing action in October. It was hoped an agreement could be reached early in the new year.
We are now calling on Swinburne to return to the table to bargain in good faith on the many clauses yet to be discussed.
Instead, Swinburne proposed a new PAVE that would have seen our members become the lowest paid in the state. Both unions were shocked when management presented a final offer with several clauses, including salaries, yet to be finalised in negotiations.
The AEU and NTEU ran strong ‘vote no’ campaigns, resulting in 84% of eligible employees rejecting Swinburne’s proposed non-union agreement. We are now calling on Swinburne to return to the table to bargain in good faith on the many clauses yet to be discussed.
RMIT negotiations postponed
Negotiations were due to commence early 2022 for the new RMIT Vocational Education Teachers Agreement. We now expect these to be delayed until early 2023, due to the appointment of a new chancellor and vice chancellor, who are in the process of developing a 10-year strategic plan, to be finalised later in the year.
To ensure that vocational education teachers are not disadvantaged by the delay, RMIT has confirmed that TAFE staff will receive a 2% pay rise in November 2022. All entitlements, benefits and protections outlined in the current enterprise agreements remain in place.
