Thank you for your support of and participation in the Work Bans that have been in place the first two weeks of this term. These Work Bans have now finished.The obligations outlined in the Teacher Responsibility Guide (TRG) that must now be fulfilled as normal are:
- Staff meetings (as per the 1 hour weekly meeting outlined in the TRG) (3.3 Other Professional Responsibilities, pg.7-8)
- Meetings with line managers (4. Meetings, pg.10)
- Marking and assessment (3. Allocation of Teacher Work/3.3 Other Professional Responsibilities, pg.6-8)
- Parent teacher interviews (3. Allocation of Teacher Work/3.3 Other Professional Responsibilities, pg.6-8)
But what about Work-to-Rule? Is that still going?
Yes. Work-to-Rule Protected Action is still in place. The AEU NT has notified the employer this is an on-going action, until further notice.Work-to-Rule is intended to help members manage their workload in a positive way, not to cause additional stressors. We encourage you and your sub-branch to keep this in mind when coming to any collective or individual decisions regarding continued participation. Please consider Work-to-Rule as an option for individual members and sub-branches to implement as they see fit in their own context.
Remind me what Work-to-Rule means?
Work-to-Rule essentially concerns keeping to required hours of work only and the withdrawal of discretionary/voluntary effort. Relevant sections of the TRG are:
- Hours of Work. Exact timings will vary according to context, but the point to note is the requirement to be present at least 10 minutes before and after scheduled responsibilities where you hold the duty of care. (2. Hours of Work/2.1 Ordinary Hours of Duty, pg.4/2.3 Student Supervision pg.5)Note: Your notional working week is 36 hours and 45 minutes. This means (in most school scenarios) your notional working day should not be longer than 7 hours and 21 minutes.
- Voluntary/Discretionary Effort (3.6 Voluntary/Discretionary Effort pg.9)
Read more about Work-to-Rule and access a copy of the TRG at http://aeunt.org.au/
As always, a collaborative discussion with leadership and your sub-branch is always a good idea to ensure people have a common understanding of what is and isn’t being done.
We have been contacted by the OCPE and negotiations that may lead to a new offer will recommence in earnest this week.