I’m Riki Scanlan. I’m working as a casual tutor in Political Economy, as well as a participant in that eternal purgatory known as ‘completing a PhD.’ I want your support for National Councillor because the NTEU needs a grassroots and left-wing campaign to pressure the Albanese government into taking action.
An Albanese government is both an opportunity and a hurdle. It’s an opportunity because we can pressure Labor in ways that we can’t pressure the Liberals. It’s a hurdle because, all too often, the union movement has receded and retreated during Labor governments, hoping that the ALP will just deliver good policy. We know how Labor has failed our sector in the past, and that’s why we need to set a strategic vision for how we’re going to win change.
National Council sets the political direction and priorities of the NTEU across the nation. If elected, I will push for more power and support for grassroots members, so we can win things like a real pay rise and reinvigorated federal funding in both education and research. We know that the strength of our movement comes from our members. At a branch-by-branch level, we need empowerment and support from the national executive of the union.
Crucially, we need to campaign on industrial democracy, not just for the higher education sector, but for all sectors and for all workers. That means regaining an actual right to strike, not the limp excuse for strike legislation that currently constrains our ability to take action.
With inflationary pressures beginning to hit us now, we need to fight for a real pay rise – ideally, a CPI-linked wage claim so we can guarantee security of income across future years. That’s a campaign we can do in our branch, but one which we need to coordinate across the sector as well.
At the same time, we need federal funding changes beyond just more Commonwealth-supported student places – we need a new model, one that champions and values the work of teachers, researchers, and professional staff across our university.
As a nonbinary and queer unionist, I was disappointed last year to hear stories of transphobes and TERFs in the highest levels of the NTEU, and it’s important that we elect National Councillors prepared and able to challenge that. Prejudices like these have no place in our union, and the same goes for any other prejudicial or discriminatory ideology. Except for being anti-management.
I hope I can enjoy your support for National Councillor, and I hope you support my comrades in Rank and File Action. We want to see our national leadership reflect the kind of organising and activity we’ve seen at USYD. For a full how-to-vote and to find out how you can get more involved, go to https://rafausyd.wordpress.com
Vote [1] to [5] for National Council:
[1] Riki Scanlan,
[2] Dylan Griffiths,
[3] Wanyi (Wendy) Xin,
[4] Matte Rochford, and
[5] Luke Alexander
Vote [1] Dylan Griffiths for National Councillor (General Staff)
Rank-And-File Action USYD 