The Australian Education Union’s (AEU) reckless decision to slap work bans on crucial teaching reforms designed to improve learning for children is a scandalous act of sabotage that exposes the union’s true priorities – its own political interests over the needs of students.
In rejecting Federal Education Minister Jason Clare’s ‘Better and Fairer Schools Agreement’, which includes proven, evidence-based teaching methods like phonics instruction, the AEU is deliberately undermining efforts to enhance student outcomes.
The reforms proposed by the federal government are not arbitrary, they are targeted interventions aimed at fixing persistent shortcomings in Australia’s education system. Phonics-based reading methods, one of the key elements of these reforms, are backed by an overwhelming body of research that proves their effectiveness in helping children learn to read, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Yet, despite the clear, research-backed benefits, the AEU has decided to stand in the way, demonstrating a disconnect from global education trends and what’s best for children’s learning.
By blocking these reforms, the AEU reveals a deep commitment to outdated methods and union politics, rather than to any meaningful progress in education.
Defending the work bans, AEU President Correna Haythorpe claimed the reforms would increase teacher workloads. Yet, this rings hollow. It is true teachers in our public schools face workload challenges, however, it is no justification to sabotage reforms that could make a real difference in how effectively students learn. If anything, by obstructing phonics and other proven methods, the AEU is ensuring that teachers will continue to struggle with outdated, inefficient techniques that only make their jobs harder in the long run. The irony is painful; the union claims to be protecting teachers but is, in reality, condemning them to a failing status quo that does no one any good.
Moreover, the additional funding offered by the federal government, an additional $16 billion over the next decade, is conditional on implementing these very reforms. By issuing bloody-minded work bans, the AEU is not just blocking vital changes; it is also forgoing funding it so often claims is needed to improve education. The union’s stance is not just unrealistic, it is actively harmful to both students and teachers.
What makes this more egregious is the fact that the AEU leadership imposed this work ban without even consulting its own members. This authoritarian decision-making underscores how out of touch the union’s leadership has become with the real needs of teachers and classrooms. Classroom teachers understand the value of evidence-based teaching methods like phonics and would likely support these reforms, but their voices have been stifled by union executives more concerned with political games than with meaningful education reform.
The AEU’s actions diminish its relevance and role in reforming Australian education. When an organisation that is supposed to champion the interests of students, teachers, and public schools instead chooses to obstruct reforms that could dramatically improve student outcomes, it has lost its way. Western Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory have all recognised the value of these reforms and signed the federal government’s deal, proving that a balanced approach to funding and teaching improvement is not only necessary but possible.
The AEU, on the other hand, has clung to an unrealistic demand for 100 per cent funding of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) while simultaneously rejecting reforms that could begin addressing the very gaps that SRS funding is supposed to target.
In short, the AEU’s work ban is a disgrace. It is an old-fashion act of trade union bastardry with Australian students the collateral damage.
On top of its demands to abandon NAPLAN testing, the AEU’s refusal to implement evidence-based reforms demonstrates why the union does not deserve a seat at the education reform table.
Colleen Harkin is a Research Fellow and National Manager of the Class Action program at the Institute of Public Affairs.