Joo-Cheong Tham – Victorian Assistant Secretary (Academic Staff)

Ruth Jelley is a passionate advocate for professional staff - she has harnessed her experience and skills working across the sector to promote respect and decent working conditions for professional staff. She has led the Victorian Division’s efforts in relation to work, health and safety including spearheading its opposition to regressive WorkCover changes; she has championed women’s rights, drawing attention to the disproportionate impact of the WorkCover changes on women and joining in Victorian Trades Hall Council’s campaign against non-disclosure agreements in relation to sexual harassment.

Ruth has also been part of the Victorian Division leadership (together with Sarah Roberts as Division Secretary and myself as Assistant Secretary (Academic Staff)) which has succeeded in:

• Coordinating a bargaining campaign across Victoria that secured marked improvements in wages, job security, workload protection and access to flexible working arrangements through increased union activism (including a state-wide strike and historic strike action at various branches); 

• Growing union membership by more than 7% with Victorian membership now exceeding 10,000;

• Modernising the Division’s staffing structures so that it can more effectively integrate organising and industrial strategies; and

• Elevating the Division’s public advocacy through sustained engagement with the media and government policy-makers.

I endorse Ruth Jelley for Victorian Assistant Secretary (Professional Staff).