Alma Torlakovic

About me

I work at the HDR Admin Centre. I’ve been a professional staff member at USyd since 2011. For all of that time, I’ve been active in organising to stop job cuts, pushing back against excessive workloads, building union membership and winning dignity and decent conditions. I have been involved in three rounds of bargaining as an active member of the Branch Committee, Campaign Committee and National Councillor. I am nominating for re-election to the Branch Committee and National Council.

I have led and organised strikes, pickets, rallies, to build a staunch union branch. I was Picket Captain during the recent strikes, as well as coordinated the picket lines, organised, chaired and spoken at numerous meetings and rallies.

I was central to organising the recent 48-hour strike and picket, and the 24-hour First Nations strike, and continue to advocate for strike action to win our bargaining claims. 

Strike to win a serious pay rise

We need to strike for a serious pay rise, one that’s above inflation. I have been leading the fight to increase our union’s wage claim to be CPI + 2.5%. The university can afford this, they’ve just registered over $1 billion in surplus. 

There are no shortcuts to tackling the chronic job insecurity, the sickening rounds of sackings and cuts, the ever-expanding restructures and outsourcing. We’ve only won decent conditions in the past by striking, and we’ll have to again this year.

To build up to this we need activity including workplace meetings, leafleting, postering, and wide discussion of exactly what claims we’re pushing for – to make every member an activist.

Health and Safety 

I am passionate about health and safety. I have campaigned consistently to improve air quality in the JFR building, including during the bushfires and most recently for safety measures to be implemented during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In 2018, I led the ‘Healthy Workspaces’ campaign, which included the right for staff in F23 to have pot plants and personal items on desks. I am currently leading the campaign for the same rights in the HDR Admin Centre.

Dignity at work - job security, no individual metrics 

One of my proudest union organising achievements was leading the campaign to stop individual metrics being used against staff at HDR Admin Centre - and winning! I have played a central role in organising staff at Student Centre to address issues of workload, casualisation, eliminate use of “labour hire”, and insufficient staffing. 

Social justice 

I am an active member of Socialist Alternative and I have dedicated my life to the fight for a better world. I rally my colleagues to attend social justice rallies, including the global climate change strikes, refugee and LGBTQ+ rights rallies.

NTEU Fightback 

As an activist in NTEU Fightback, I’m proud to have played a role in stopping the wage cutting scheme known as the “Jobs Protection Framework” from being rolled out nationally by our union’s leadership in 2020. Our union should be fighting to maintain jobs, wages and conditions, not giving them up.

Every candidate running with us is actively involved in grassroots union organising.

Our vision for the union

The past two years have seen not only significant attacks but also record turnouts for union branch meetings across the sector. We can build on that to win major improvements for everyone in higher education through a serious industrial campaign.

NTEU Fightback is a crew of the staunchest, most dedicated unionists: Alma Torlakovic, Jennifer Huch-Hoogvliet, Jeremy Heathcote, Nicole MacDougall, Lucy Nicolls, Catherine Sutton-Brady and David Allen. 

About me

I work at the HDR Admin Centre. I’ve been a professional staff member at USyd since 2011. For all of that time, I’ve been active in organising to stop job cuts, pushing back against excessive workloads, building union membership and winning dignity and decent conditions. I have been involved in three rounds of bargaining as an active member of the Branch Committee, Campaign Committee and National Councillor. I am nominating for re-election to the Branch Committee and National Council.

I have led and organised strikes, pickets, rallies, to build a staunch union branch. I was Picket Captain during the recent strikes, as well as coordinated the picket lines, organised, chaired and spoken at numerous meetings and rallies.

I was central to organising the recent 48-hour strike and picket, and the 24-hour First Nations strike, and continue to advocate for strike action to win our bargaining claims. 

Strike to win a serious pay rise

We need to strike for a serious pay rise, one that’s above inflation. I have been leading the fight to increase our union’s wage claim to be CPI + 2.5%. The university can afford this, they’ve just registered over $1 billion in surplus. 

There are no shortcuts to tackling the chronic job insecurity, the sickening rounds of sackings and cuts, the ever-expanding restructures and outsourcing. We’ve only won decent conditions in the past by striking, and we’ll have to again this year.

To build up to this we need activity including workplace meetings, leafleting, postering, and wide discussion of exactly what claims we’re pushing for – to make every member an activist.

Health and Safety 

I am passionate about health and safety. I have campaigned consistently to improve air quality in the JFR building, including during the bushfires and most recently for safety measures to be implemented during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In 2018, I led the ‘Healthy Workspaces’ campaign, which included the right for staff in F23 to have pot plants and personal items on desks. I am currently leading the campaign for the same rights in the HDR Admin Centre.

Dignity at work - job security, no individual metrics 

One of my proudest union organising achievements was leading the campaign to stop individual metrics being used against staff at HDR Admin Centre - and winning! I have played a central role in organising staff at Student Centre to address issues of workload, casualisation, eliminate use of “labour hire”, and insufficient staffing. 

Social justice 

I am an active member of Socialist Alternative and I have dedicated my life to the fight for a better world. I rally my colleagues to attend social justice rallies, including the global climate change strikes, refugee and LGBTQ+ rights rallies.

NTEU Fightback 

As an activist in NTEU Fightback, I’m proud to have played a role in stopping the wage cutting scheme known as the “Jobs Protection Framework” from being rolled out nationally by our union’s leadership in 2020. Our union should be fighting to maintain jobs, wages and conditions, not giving them up.

Every candidate running with us is actively involved in grassroots union organising.

Our vision for the union

The past two years have seen not only significant attacks but also record turnouts for union branch meetings across the sector. We can build on that to win major improvements for everyone in higher education through a serious industrial campaign.

NTEU Fightback is a crew of the staunchest, most dedicated unionists: Alma Torlakovic, Jennifer Huch-Hoogvliet, Jeremy Heathcote, Nicole MacDougall, Lucy Nicolls, Catherine Sutton-Brady and David Allen. 

About me

I work at the HDR Admin Centre. I’ve been a professional staff member at USyd since 2011. For all of that time, I’ve been active in organising to stop job cuts, pushing back against excessive workloads, building union membership and winning dignity and decent conditions. I have been involved in three rounds of bargaining as an active member of the Branch Committee, Campaign Committee and National Councillor. I am nominating for re-election to the Branch Committee and National Council.

I have led and organised strikes, pickets, rallies, to build a staunch union branch. I was Picket Captain during the recent strikes, as well as coordinated the picket lines, organised, chaired and spoken at numerous meetings and rallies.

I was central to organising the recent 48-hour strike and picket, and the 24-hour First Nations strike, and continue to advocate for strike action to win our bargaining claims. 

Strike to win a serious pay rise

We need to strike for a serious pay rise, one that’s above inflation. I have been leading the fight to increase our union’s wage claim to be CPI + 2.5%. The university can afford this, they’ve just registered over $1 billion in surplus. 

There are no shortcuts to tackling the chronic job insecurity, the sickening rounds of sackings and cuts, the ever-expanding restructures and outsourcing. We’ve only won decent conditions in the past by striking, and we’ll have to again this year.

To build up to this we need activity including workplace meetings, leafleting, postering, and wide discussion of exactly what claims we’re pushing for – to make every member an activist.

Health and Safety 

I am passionate about health and safety. I have campaigned consistently to improve air quality in the JFR building, including during the bushfires and most recently for safety measures to be implemented during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In 2018, I led the ‘Healthy Workspaces’ campaign, which included the right for staff in F23 to have pot plants and personal items on desks. I am currently leading the campaign for the same rights in the HDR Admin Centre.

Dignity at work - job security, no individual metrics 

One of my proudest union organising achievements was leading the campaign to stop individual metrics being used against staff at HDR Admin Centre - and winning! I have played a central role in organising staff at Student Centre to address issues of workload, casualisation, eliminate use of “labour hire”, and insufficient staffing. 

Social justice 

I am an active member of Socialist Alternative and I have dedicated my life to the fight for a better world. I rally my colleagues to attend social justice rallies, including the global climate change strikes, refugee and LGBTQ+ rights rallies.

NTEU Fightback 

As an activist in NTEU Fightback, I’m proud to have played a role in stopping the wage cutting scheme known as the “Jobs Protection Framework” from being rolled out nationally by our union’s leadership in 2020. Our union should be fighting to maintain jobs, wages and conditions, not giving them up.

Every candidate running with us is actively involved in grassroots union organising.

Our vision for the union

The past two years have seen not only significant attacks but also record turnouts for union branch meetings across the sector. We can build on that to win major improvements for everyone in higher education through a serious industrial campaign.

NTEU Fightback is a crew of the staunchest, most dedicated unionists: Alma Torlakovic, Jennifer Huch-Hoogvliet, Jeremy Heathcote, Nicole MacDougall, Lucy Nicolls, Catherine Sutton-Brady and David Allen.