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Speaker 1: Now, I'm sure many of you, like me this morning,

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Speaker 1: were pretty surprised to read the paper and see that, well,

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Speaker 1: a childcare worker who's raised generations of territory children's been

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Speaker 1: unceremoniously made redundant by an early childhood education center well

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Speaker 1: for being what they say is unqualified. Now, we do

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Speaker 1: actually know that Irene Billius, who has worked at the

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Speaker 1: center for thirty three years, does have a diploma in

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Speaker 1: early childhood care services. But the center, well, they'd made

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Speaker 1: some changes and wanted or required a degree qualified teacher.

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Speaker 1: Now what followed I think is pretty upsetting. Now, joining

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Speaker 1: me on the line to tell us a little bit

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Speaker 1: more about this situation is Erina Early from United the

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Speaker 1: United Workers Union.

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Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Erina.

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Speaker 3: Good morning, Katie. Erina.

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Speaker 1: Can you tell us a little bit more about this situation.

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Speaker 1: I understand that the union is obviously representing Irene and

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Speaker 1: trying to help her at the moment, what's unfolded exactly?

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Speaker 3: Okay, thanks Katie. So what happened is the committee notified

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Speaker 3: Irene that they were looking at making her perposition redundant

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Speaker 3: because they required a teacher in that position instead. So

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Speaker 3: what they did, Katie, they did not offer Irene an

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Speaker 3: alternative employment as you need to do when you're looking

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Speaker 3: for redundancies. Also to when they found out that Irene

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Speaker 3: as well, everyone knows who knows Irene is an outstanding

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Speaker 3: woman who had a very strong voice, not just for

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Speaker 3: herself but also for early educators and the profession and

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Speaker 3: the community. Questioned but why she's been offered a redundancy,

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Speaker 3: why can't they keep her on, etc. And when she

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Speaker 3: started asking questions, all of a sudden, you're made redundant now,

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Speaker 3: So they escalated a situation from a possible redundancy to

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Speaker 3: a redundancy. When she questioned and.

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Speaker 2: So Erina was there the opportunity?

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Speaker 1: You know, did they say that if she wanted to

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Speaker 1: stay that she would have to study a university degree

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Speaker 1: or what did they tell her?

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Speaker 3: So basically it they advised her put some watson forward.

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Speaker 3: So Irene did. They were completely ignored to put the

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Speaker 3: option in. And I'm not joking. Five minutes later we

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Speaker 3: get a response back they know, we don't consider you're

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Speaker 3: optional feasible. You're not taking this matter seriously. So everything

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Speaker 3: Irene tabled, they just kept knocking back erin.

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Speaker 1: I think that this is pulled at the heartstrings of

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Speaker 1: so many Territorians, because the reality here is that so

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Speaker 1: many of us actually know Irene. We've had our children,

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Speaker 1: or some people have had their grandchildren cared for by

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Speaker 1: Irene at the old care center. Is this quite an

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Speaker 1: unusual situation that has unfolded from your experience, it is, Kate.

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Speaker 3: We deal with redundancies all the time. But the way

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Speaker 3: that they're just like throw an Irene away is absolutely

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Speaker 3: heartbreaking and devastating. They didn't even have the guts, Katie,

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Speaker 3: to tell her her job is being made redundant. They

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Speaker 3: actually did that through the union. No phone calls, no letters,

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Speaker 3: address her, Let's have a meeting. We'll just tell the union,

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Speaker 3: and the union could tell her that she no longer

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Speaker 3: has a job. And you know, they told the parents

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Speaker 3: I'm live, They told the staff live why she left.

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Speaker 3: They told her that she just resigned.

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Speaker 1: It is like, honestly, it's really sad to hear I

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Speaker 1: know that, Like I've seen a copy of this of

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Speaker 1: this letter, and I know that they had said that.

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Speaker 1: You know that as a result of a restructure, but

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Speaker 1: also as a result of of I guess the way

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Speaker 1: that they are managing things or the way that things

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Speaker 1: have been managed with their accreditation that they would need

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Speaker 1: somebody in there who had that university qualification. So in

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Speaker 1: order to meet the national quality regulations, they need to

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Speaker 1: hire a qualified early childhood teacher erin.

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Speaker 2: Does that cut it from your perspective.

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Speaker 3: No, not at all, Katie. We have other early education

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Speaker 3: centers and they've had had to get teachers as part

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Speaker 3: of their licensing requirements. They've kept their staff on. This

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Speaker 3: is one of the first we've actually been here in

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Speaker 3: the NT that we're aware of. They've actually made redundant

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Speaker 3: an early educator, and especially someone like Irene. Childcare is

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Speaker 3: in a crisis, a Katie kind of throw away an

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Speaker 3: early educator.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm not someone with it, Like, you know, you're

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Speaker 1: talking about so much experience and I, oh, is it?

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Speaker 1: You know, we're getting people messaging saying she's got so

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Speaker 1: much experience, like it's honestly, it's more useful than a

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Speaker 1: university degree.

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Speaker 3: Well, it's crazy. It's crazy, Katie. When we first get notified,

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Speaker 3: I thought someone was joking with me when they told

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Speaker 3: me that what happened to Irene. I was like, seriously, no,

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Speaker 3: You've got the wrong person.

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Speaker 2: So of all the.

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Speaker 3: People to make redundant and to be treated this way

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Speaker 3: with the process that they follow is I'm absolutely gobsmacked,

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Speaker 3: absolutely Scott, that the committee should be completely ashamed of themselves.

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Speaker 1: Erina, like we're to from here, you know, is there

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Speaker 1: any opportunity that she could be re employed?

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Speaker 2: I mean, would Irene want to go back to this job?

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Speaker 1: What? Like?

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Speaker 2: What are her options now?

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Speaker 3: So with Irene last speaking to Irene, she loves her job,

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Speaker 3: she loves those children, she loves the center of the parents.

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Speaker 3: I believe she was offered her job, she would come back.

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Speaker 3: That center is everything to her, and the center revolves

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Speaker 3: around Irene. Industrially, is we need to it's with our

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Speaker 3: legal to see if it is a genuine redundancy. But

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Speaker 3: knowing Irene, she would just want her job back and

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Speaker 3: being back with her children and the parents. Is this ageist, Well,

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Speaker 3: we have thought of that too, Katie. We have looked

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Speaker 3: at those options too. We've looked at you know, the

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Speaker 3: oldest person there, et cetera. So that is something that

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Speaker 3: we have considered. We can't rule that out as well, Katie.

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Speaker 1: I mean, we are being inundated with messages throughout this morning,

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Speaker 1: you know, even now, like I've got a message that's

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Speaker 1: come through from somebody whose children used to go there.

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Speaker 1: I received a message a short time ago from the

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Speaker 1: Lord Mayor convat Scarlets. You know, people are really sort

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Speaker 1: of upset about this and are really feeling quite sad.

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Speaker 2: And I do want to say that I know that

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Speaker 2: so many.

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Speaker 1: Of the staff that work at the Nightcliff Family Center

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Speaker 1: are absolutely beautiful, wonderful educators, and this is in no

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Speaker 1: way a reflection upon those beautiful people that work there,

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Speaker 1: But it just seems like a really unfair situation that's unfolded.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely, am Katie. That's something that is completely unfair, and

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Speaker 3: there is really no reason why Irene has been treated

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Speaker 3: this way.

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Speaker 1: Well, Erina, I'm really interested to see what does unfold

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Speaker 1: over the next couple of days, you know, Yeah, please

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Speaker 1: keep us posted. I'd love to speak to Irene, but

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Speaker 1: I know that at this point she's gutted by what

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Speaker 1: has gone on, and so I really appreciate you having

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Speaker 1: a chat with me this morning.

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Speaker 3: Always my pleasure, Katie.

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Speaker 2: Thank you,