CATHOLIC school staff across Queensland have voted in favour of a new enterprise agreement, underpinned by an annual 2.5 per cent pay increase.
Queensland Catholic Education commission executive director Lee-Anne Perry said about 95 per cent of staff who voted supported the new four-year agreement.
“Staff in 300 Catholic schools around the state have recognised that the four-year agreement is a fair outcome for all staff,” Dr Perry said.
“They have been very patient through a lengthy negotiation process and I want to thank them for that.”
The agreement enables staff to receive wage increases back-dated to mid-2015, when negotiations were already underway on the new agreement.
“We are pleased that staff have accepted this new agreement with such strong support,” Dr Perry said.
“The agreement recognises the distinct nature of Queensland’s Catholic education sector and recognises the hard work of all our staff who provide outstanding learning opportunities for young Queenslanders in Catholic schools.”
“Now that the agreement has been accepted, school authorities will begin work on processing back pay as soon as is practicable.”
Key elements of the new agreement include delivering wage increases of 2.5 per cent per year, a number of one-off increases to the base amounts paid in many teacher classifications and a review of the teacher classification structure with a view to implementing any changes by July 1, 2018.
The new agreement follows negotiations between Catholic school employers, employee representatives and the Fair Work Commission