◆ DELEGATES
Sylvia Klonaris
VET Staff Coordinator and NTEU Delegate, Charles Darwin University I have received a lot of support from the NTEU over the years and I have been an active union member to support others who receive unfair treatment from their employer. I am a feminist and passionate about women’s issues such as: equity in the workplace, unequal pay, lack of promotions, lack of professional development, restrictions to reclassifications, workplace bullying, workplace violence and excessive workloads. Additionally, as a professional employee, I have noticed the lack of career opportunities. I decided to contribute and fight to improve our conditions by being more active in the Union. The Industrial Officer suggested I attend a delegates meeting. He could see how passionate I was to help people and indicated this would be the place to do it, this provided me the opportunity to help others on work related matters. I made suggestions at that first meeting. Lolita, the then NT Division Secretary asked me, 'so what can you do about it?' and it all began there! Janet Sincock the Vice-President General Staff and Women’s Action Committee Representative then asked me to be proxy for her to attend a Conference in Adelaide for General Staff in 2013. I came back with ideas for the Division to campaign for better entitlements and what we can do for our next bargaining round. I valued the solidarity within the NTEU, it gave me reason to do more within the Division. Charles Darwin University (CDU) are currently undergoing a review with more planned restructures to come. CDU’s proposal will potentially cause job losses and the proposed restructure will have a negative impact on our students and staff. CDU is one of the largest employers in the Territory and this will also affect the economy if staff are made redundant. 'Save our Jobs' is the NTEU campaign. A petition was established for people to sign in support of the staff and call on an independent assessment of the current VET change proposal. Exciting moments in this campaign have been our capacity to successfully put a hold on the restructure and save some jobs. A dispute was issued with the Fair Work Commission. It felt like a
win, for a short period and some jobs were saved following the staff feedback to the VC. As a delegate in this campaign, I am challenged by the resistance I encounter from management when we ask them account for their actions, to offer commitment to solutions and to respond. It is important to take action to address issues affecting our members. Taking part in a rally or strike means standing up for our rights and it demonstrates to our members that we stand united to obtain better work entitlements to get what we want and save our jobs. If you want to make a change or difference in the workplace, this is the place to be heard. You are appreciated and the reward is knowing that you have done good for others, which is amazing! You build friendships and stand up for your rights in solidarity. If you believe in democracy, then be part of the Union Power in the workplace level. ◆ Sylvia Klonaris is an NTEU delegate, NT Division Vice-President General Staff, Women’s Action Committee General Staff Representative and UniSuper Standing Committee Member (General Staff) Find out more at nteu.org.au/delegates Above: Sylvia Klonaris MC'ing the CDU Bluestocking Week event in 2019.
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ADVOCATE VOL. 27 NO. 1 ◆ MARCH 2020
