Matte Rochford

Our workplace must be run for the collective good of staff, students and community.

I’m Matte Rochford, running as a member of Rank and File Action to vigorously defend colleagues’ working conditions, and student learning conditions. 

Joining USyd in 2022 as a Student Centre Assistant (casual), I began building our EA campaign and advocating for strike action. I helped lead Student Centre comrades as picket organiser and agitated for the strongest possible action to win our demands.

An active, member-led, politically engaged workplace was key to winning improved pay, defending academics’ research rights, historic casual sick-leave entitlements, and now an academic boycott of Israel (union position).

Now, as Administration Assistant (continuing) in School of Languages & Cultures, I continue with NTEU organising – which is one of the best parts of working at USyd. We have a very progressive branch which stands for social justice issues like Palestinian liberation and First Nations justice. We can do even more.

Priorities: Recruiting new members, fighting to protect our conditions, and demanding management cut ties with Israeli apartheid/militaries generally. 

We need to grow our branch and build member activity – if we do, the sky’s the limit for what we can achieve.