The 2024 pay increase was due to your union. It was your union negotiating with the Government to secure the deal. So why do non-unionists get a pay rise without taking part in the win in any way?

Non-members may get the pay rise, something that rankles those who are part of the union. However, they don’t have a say in the pay rise. They do not get a vote on whether to accept any pay offer.

In addition, there is no-one there for them if they need any other form of help at work. From reporting harassment to negotiating workplace flexibility, members have access to their union’s expert industrial staff every day of the week.

Members also have access to benefits as diverse as cheaper groceries and legal assistance.

But why do non-union members get to enjoy all the pay rises negotiated by a union they refuse to join?

The answer is the Liberal National Coalition. The Howard Government passed laws in the late 1990s and 2000s prohibiting union preferences in hiring, bargaining fees or other support for union membership. This essentially handed the cost of workplace negotiations to union members and gives non-members a free ride.

Members and delegates report some colleagues boast about not having to pay for union membership, while they enjoy pay rises, and of course weekends, annual leave, and overtime pay.

But what has been proven again and again – most recently by the pay rises gained by the PSA and other unions – is that unions are essential to industrial relations. Workers will always need unions to have any hope of workplace wins. You only need to read a couple of pages of any industrial relations document before you realise that dedicated and professional industrial staff are required to interpret and understand what is actually meant by all the jargon.

The recent pay rise for our members, and the uplifts won for many officers will be enjoyed by those of us who do pay for union membership, and those who ride for free. We live in a society that values freedom of choice. And the PSA certainly agrees with and fights for people having freedom of choice. But the choice to not pay to belong to a union yet benefit from the hard work that unions do doesn’t add up.

Last year, the Australian Council of Trade Unions put forward the suggestion that unions charge a fee for workplace negotiations – as is done in the United States – to be paid by non-union members who are advantaged by union wins. Industrial relations expert Professor Anthony Forsyth added that it is only fair that employees could choose to either to join their union or pay a fee for services they obtain from having a union-negotiated agreement. Further, that it’s up to the Albanese Government address this issue in the next round of industrial relations legislative reforms.

Until then, we are still largely stuck with John Howard’s anti-union industrial relations laws.

The PSA will always fight for its members, no matter the adversities. It has for 125 years, many of them in tough political environments. Strong membership is essential to the success of any union, and despite almost universal union membership decline nationwide, the PSA is successful.

The bigger we are, the more big wins – like the recent pay rise – we will have.