AEU Federal Conference – the union is you
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 128 No 2, 31 March 2023, page no. 18
The 2023 AEU Federal Conference was held in the historic ETU Ballroom at the Victorian Trades Hall from Friday 24 February until Sunday 26 February.
The QTU had 19 delegates at the conference, including three AEU Executive members, a delegate from TAFE, and a member from Yalukit Yulendj (an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander delegate).
AEU President Correna Haythorpe opened the conference with an address highlighting the work of the AEU for this year, with a focus on Voice. Treaty. Truth., early childhood, TAFE, schools, state education as a public good, funding, workload, the teacher shortage, climate change, and the world at large.
She also set the tone for the presenters to come with the bleak reflection that Year 12 graduates in 2023 will never in their lifetime have gone to a state school that has received appropriate federal funding.
The well-worn adage “resources delayed = resources denied” reverberated around the ETU ballroom as Correna reiterated that public education is a fundamental human right.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare (below right) followed Correna’s address. He spoke about the type of Education Minister he wants to be, and highlighted building respect for the teaching profession as a key government priority. He also outlined that the problems within the current public education funding model would take time to fix and that the federal government would have to work with the states and territories to raise the profile of the profession.
He did, however, agree that fairness is needed in government funding models, with needs-based funding a priority. Mr Clare also echoed Correna’s sentiments by reiterating that the past decade has been a lost one in terms of public-school funding.
QTU member and Greens senator Penny Allman-Payne also addressed conference. She spoke passionately about her own experiences as a classroom teacher and how a lack of appropriate funding for our state schools had drastically impacted student outcomes over the past decade. She announced that the Greens intended to introduce a bill to Parliament later in the week which would seek to remove the current 20 per cent federal cap on state school funding. In an impassioned call to action, she asserted that public money should only be used to fund state schools.
A range of inspiring keynote speakers also addressed conference, including:
- Kevin Bates (AEU Federal Secretary)
- Scott Connolly (ACTU Assistant Secretary)
- Adam Rorris (education economist)
- Barbara Preston (researcher in education policy)
- Nareen Young (Associate Dean, University of Technology Sydney)
- Stacey Fox (Senior Manager, Dandolo Partners)
- Damien Cahill (General Secretary, National Tertiary Education Union)
- Luke Hilakari (Secretary – Victorian Trades Hall Council)
- Barbara Pocock (Greens Senator and Chair of Select Committee on Work and Care).
International guest speakers included:
- Susan Hopgood (President, Education International)
- Sharan Burrow (former General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation)
- Hilario Benzon (Associate Director – National Education Association (NEA) Center for Racial and Social Justice – USA)
- Manuela Mendonça (President, Federação Nacional dos Professores (FENPROF) – Portugal)
- Andrene Bamford (President, Educational Institute of Scotland)
- Mark Jewell (Executive member, NEA)
- Mark Potter (President, NZEI Te Riu Roa – New Zealand).
The annual AEU Federal Conference provides an opportunity for delegates to hear the latest on professional issues impacting upon teachers around the globe. It is an inspirational yet sobering experience. A series of articles arising from the 2023 AEU Conference will appear in forthcoming journals, overviewing the current issues facing our profession and highlighting lessons learned from the range of keynote speakers who presented.