WHEN: 9am to 10am, Friday 10 November 2023

WHERE: Fair Work Commission, Terrace Tower, 80 William St, East Sydney

WHO: UWU spokesperson and early childhood educators will be available for comment

Today’s Multi Employer Bargaining meeting for early childhood educators will be joined by Federal Government representatives for the first time in history.

Quotes attributable to Helen Gibbons, Director Early Education, United Workers Union: 

“United Workers Union welcomes the Federal Government to these vital and historic negotiations, and look forward to a Government commitment to fund the outcome of a Multi Employer Bargaining Agreement.

“Over 120,000 educators are keenly focused on the outcome of negotiations today. For the first time, negotiations for a Multi Employer Agreement will bring the Government as the funder of the sector to the table.

“United Workers Union members have advocated for the new bargaining laws that have made these negotiations possible. The Federal Government said these new laws would get wages moving for historically undervalued sectors like early education and care. So on the very first day these laws came into place, educators applied to the Fair Work Commission to urgently fix the wages crisis in early education.

“Now workers, families, and communities are looking to the Federal Government to provide the missing piece in this solution: a funding commitment to stop the crisis in our sector.

“Educators, centres and families know that early education is in crisis. That’s why educators, unions and employers have joined together to find a workforce solution to a workforce crisis. The only way that can be achieved is by government funding directly supporting higher wages in the sector.

“Today the Government will hear directly from educators about what is needed to fix the crisis in early education.

“Every child deserves access to quality early learning. Right now our early learning sector is in crisis, with children being turned away, staff shortages across the country and educators burning out. There’s no time to waste.

“Educators have won the right to bargain across their sector and have brought the Government to the table: now the Government needs to commit to funding the new Agreement.”

ENDS – Media Contact: 1300 898 633, media@unitedworkers.org.au