AEU Federal Conference (part 1)
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 131 No 2, 2 April 2026, page no 24.
The 42nd Australian Education Union (AEU) Federal Conference opened with a Welcome to Country delivered by Professor N’arwee’t Carolyn Briggs AM, Boon Wurrung Senior Elder and Founder of the Boon Wurrung Foundation.
AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe formally opened the conference, celebrating the securing of Better and Fairer Schools agreements across seven of eight states and territories. She emphasised, however, that significant challenges remain, including persistent inequity in capital funding between public and private systems, the ongoing teacher retention crisis, and the urgent need for truth-telling and culturally safe schooling across all public education settings.
PM’s address
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese acknowledged that the AEU’s work had contributed to the Better Schools agreements and emphasised the central role of public education and the transformative impact of teachers. He reinforced that creating equitable resources for every child is essential to opportunity and future success.
The Prime Minister outlined the outcomes of the Jobs and Skills Summit and highlighted substantial federal investment in TAFE, including free TAFE places and $10,000 cash incentives for students on construction and electrical courses. He also spoke about the unique role of state schools in maintaining social cohesion.
He concluded by outlining initiatives addressing intergenerational equity, including a 20 per cent reduction in HECS debts and the introduction of paid practicums.
Educational International (EI)
EI General Secretary David Edwards warned of rising wealth inequality and growing corporate influence in politics and education, arguing that education unions around the world must challenge concentrated power and protect every child’s right to free public schooling.
Arthur Hamilton Award
Jervis Bay School in the ACT received the AEU’s Arthur Hamilton Award for Outstanding Contribution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education for its curriculum framework Country as Teacher. This supports and enhances the implementation of the Australian Curriculum across every year level through a true two-way curriculum that allows staff and students to develop deep connections by learning from and caring for Country.
AEU Life Membership
The Australian Education Union awarded Life Membership to four outstanding leaders — Amber Flohm, Mary Franklyn, Meredith Peace and the QTU’s own Jenny Swaddling. Jenny (pictured centre, with Correna Haythorpe and Cresta Richardson) was celebrated for her exceptional contributions to public education, the union movement, and the teaching profession.
ACTU Report
Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) Secretary Sally McManus urged unionists to confront the intersecting crises shaping the world: escalating climate disasters, deepening inequality, unregulated AI, and the rise of far-right extremism. She described a global environment marked by fires, floods, and the growing concentration of wealth and power, alongside rapid technological change dominated by unaccountable tech elites.
Keynote: Van Badham
Journalist and author Van Badham’s keynote address, Counterdisinformation is Union Business, explained how disinformation has been weaponised globally to weaken democracy and destabilise institutions built on equality, justice, fairness, and solidarity. Unions have become deliberate targets, with state school teachers facing increasing disinformation attacks. Van outlined how disinformation shapes narratives by exploiting credibility cues, isolating individuals, cancelling cultural figures, and shutting down alternative viewpoints. Van claimed that unions can counter disinformation by promoting media literacy, supporting independent journalism, defending librarians and researchers, encouraging critical notetaking, advocating for institutional reform, and using fact checking resources.
Anti-Racism Framework
Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman outlined the Anti-Racism Framework, which calls for truth-telling and stronger racial literacy, examining how power structures shape curriculum, how school discipline policies often lack cultural competence, the limited diversity in school leadership, and the absence of culturally safe reporting processes. Its goal is to support teachers who challenge bias and to equip staff and students with the knowledge and confidence to identify and call out racism through education, institutional reform, and curriculum change.
Anti-Racism Research
Professor Nareen Young, Director of the Centre for Indigenous People and Work at the UTS Jumbunna Institute, stressed the urgent need for a national anti-racism campaign, noting that racism against First Nations peoples remains widespread across Australian workplaces.
She also argued that the Racial Discrimination Act is no longer fit for purpose. Although workplace racism is unlawful, the act is poorly enforced, leaving First Nations peoples undervalued, underutilised, and regularly exposed to racism at work.
Senator Penny Allman-Payne
The Senator, a former teacher, emphasised that public education shapes Australia’s future, yet is expected to do so with inadequate resources. She stressed that state schools transform lives and that genuine investment is one of the most important commitments a nation can make to its young people.