‘Common knowledge’: Australian Education Union defends stance on bosses’ relationship

The AEU has defended a personal relationship between the SA branch president and secretary, on the basis it was “common knowledge” among those who elected them to the roles.

The Australian Education Union has defended a personal relationship between the president and secretary of the SA branch as “common knowledge” among those who elected them to the roles.

But an anonymous letter from a group claiming to be “a group of concerned former and current AEU staff” says concerns flagged in an internal review nearly five years ago have not been addressed.

The letter raises conflict of interest concerns over the relationship between branch president Andrew Gohl and secretary Leah York.

It also criticises the performance of the union, saying it had lost 2000 members since October 2021, had refused to lower fees to try and stop more leaving and was paying executives too much. It also said there had been a “mass exodus” of staff.

The letter was circulated along with a copy of the 2018 review, which found “the branch has what can at best be described as an unhealthy workplace culture”.

AEU SA branch president Andrew Gohl and branch secretary Leah York.

The review, based on interviews and documents, said “the number of personal relationships within the branch was frequently cited as damaging to culture”.

“A number of interviewees asked ‘who can we talk to?’ in instances of disagreement or alleged incorrect behaviour,” author Paul Goulter wrote.

It reported “frequent comments” suggesting the relationship of the branch secretary to a senior staff member was “a reason why things didn’t work”.

Ms York was branch secretary and Mr Gohl was a senior staff member when the report was released. However, the report said there had been no examples provided of actual circumstances when the relationship “got in the way”.

In a statement, the union said both were accountable to the democratically-elected branch executive and branch council.

Mr Gohl was elected in a contested ballot for president in November 2021, and Ms York was re-elected unopposed to her position in November 2022.

“The relationship between president Andrew Gohl and branch secretary Leah York is common knowledge and existed prior to either becoming elected office holders, dating back to 2015,” it said.

The union said allegations in the letter – that those who questioned the relationship had been threatened with legal action for sexual harassment – were false.

It said of the 57 recommendations contained in the report, eight remained “on foot” and the rest had been implemented.

“With all the change, some recommendations posed challenges to the union and some staff made the decision to work elsewhere,” the statement said.

The union blamed the pandemic and cost of living crisis for the fall in membership and said executive salaries were consistent with what school principals were paid.

The letter said multiple conflict of interest concerns relating to the relationship had been reported to the Registered Organisations Commission (ROC), which regulates unions.

In a statement, the commission said it was required by law to investigate protected disclosures but could not comment on specific cases.