For everyone The AEU awards are on again!
The 2023 awards recognising the efforts of our hard-working reps, sub-branches, and health and safety officers are now open – so get your nominations in.
Members will once again recognise the dedication of their union representatives and sub-branches through this year’s AEU awards. Nominations are now open, so take a moment to nominate a colleague or two (or more!) for the fantastic union work they have done over the past year to make your workplace a better place.
AEU Rep of the Year
The Rep of the Year award is a chance to recognise your rep colleagues who embody what it means to be union: recruiting new AEU members, building a strong union culture in the workplace, helping fellow members learn about the union, and developing the AEU’s democratic decision-making structures.
To go in the running, we look for reps who have:
- built at least 75% AEU membership density in your workplace, or are actively working on recruitment to increase density
- built a union culture within the workplace, encouraging other members to be active
- strongly represented the interests of AEU members
- built the capacity of other members, including helping fellow members take on union leadership roles in the workplace
- developed the sub-branch or other workplace structures
- resolved workplace issues and utilised the consultative committee
- participated in key union activities, like industrial campaigns for better enterprise agreements
- kept colleagues up to date about the union work being done.
Health & Safety Rep of the Year
Health and safety reps (HSRs) ensure everyone in the workplace gets home safely. Identifying hazards, resolving occupational health and safety issues, and making sure colleagues understand that safety is everyone’s business – it doesn’t get much more important than having a trained and active AEU HSR in the workplace. HSRs are central to building the collective power of all AEU members. And more power for members means better working lives for everyone.
The HSR of the Year will have:
- represented the interests of staff and students
- worked with their local AEU sub-branch or union body
- resolved workplace health and safety issues or disputes
- shown leadership and innovation in workplace health and safety
- prevented workplace injuries and illness
- positively promoted OHS in the workplace
- provided regular communication to colleagues on OHS issues.
Sub-branch / Region / Workplace of the Year
Union power is about working together, and nothing embodies working together better than AEU union bodies in the workplace. Whether it is a school sub-branch, a wider AEU region, or members working collectively at their TAFE institute, early childhood centre, or disability service, having a group of AEU members collaborating to advance their shared interests is the way union members make positive change. Individual members can nominate their sub-branch, region, or workplace – or band together as a collective and nominate yourselves!
The winner of Sub-branch / Workplace of the Year will have:
- developed a plan to grow the union in their workplace
- built a strong team of union reps within their executive
- successfully represented the interests of union members and the AEU
- been proactive in resolving workplace issues and utilising the consultative committee
- participated in key union activities
- maintained at least 75% membership density, or be able to show significant improvement in density
- built an AEU culture within their workplace
- developed the skills of existing and new executive members.
Last year’s award winners
Rep of the Year 2022
Alex Leemann, Dandenong High School
Sub-branch/Workplace of the Year 2022
Manor Lakes P-12 College
Region of the Year 2022
Doncaster / Warringal / Diamond Valley
Health and Safety Rep of the Year 2022
Cameron McCormick and Michelle Rudolph
If you would like to nominate your fabulous AEU rep or HSR, or your union-strong sub-branch, workplace or region, there is still time – nominate here. And if you are an AEU rep, find our empowering suite of reps training at aeuvic.asn.au/reps-info.
