Judith Cooper Member Award |
Our union relies heavily on the efforts of Chapter members and Chapters as a whole to provide initial assistance and act as representatives for fellow members.
Nominations are called from members in the Northern Territory for the ‘Judith Cooper Award’ which is presented in recognition of a member’s outstanding contribution as a union representative and/or in recognition of a Chapter’s outstanding contribution to building a strong union.
The award provides the opportunity for a School Chapter to recognise the outstanding efforts of Chapter activists by nominating those most deserving of this award.
The award recognises the particular contribution of all union activists in the Northern Territory and especially honours an outstanding contribution of an individual on behalf of Chapter members.
Why was the Judith Cooper Award Created?
Judith Cooper played an instrumental role in the establishment of a union in the non-government sector in the Northern Territory.
In 1983 Judith Cooper, a school assistant at St Mary’s Primary School, Darwin and some teacher colleagues at other predominately Catholic schools joined together to start working through the issues which were affecting non- government school employees.
In 1984 Judith was instrumental in the establishment of The Northern Territory Independent School Staff Association (NTISSA).
Judith was elected as the first Branch Secretary for NTISSA in 1984. Within the year NTISSA had worked extensively to establish the first award to cover independent schools in the NT.