Whakaaro: Is this negotiation?
As secondary teachers we regularly hear statements like: “I don’t know how you do it! I wouldn’t have the patience to do your job.” At times we feel like that too, usually Friday after a week of rainy days!
Seriously, secondary teaching is a challenging job. Media have covered the growing challenges we face: more students with behavioural, psychological and addiction issues, less real funding to deliver more programmes initiated by governments; the provision of meaningful education into the late senior school; managing changes implemented by agencies that disregard our professional advice; a shift to a low-trust model with increased accountability to more agencies.
These issues are in addition to regular curriculum delivery, assessment and reporting and the expectation to make a contribution to sporting, cultural and extension activities in our own time. The My Fair Lady production you may have seen at Golden Bay High School involved the input of 26 staff.
The increasing difficulties have been made manageable through initiatives won by our union. Recent examples include some student-free periods for administration and professional reading; the appointment of in-school guidance counsellors; staff laptops; professional development to ensure smooth implementation of the new curriculum; and finding appropriate staff for unfilled secondary teaching positions (10 percent).
Our union usually meets some willingness to negotiate in any contract round from the government negotiators. We offer that courtesy too. This year they wanted to take away a range of conditions that make it possible for us to do our jobs. They also offered a pay “increase” that meant an experienced teacher would have a reduction in purchasing power of around 4 percent, about $35 less per week (after the tax changes and if inflation is no more than Treasury’s predicted 5.9 percent). There will be little chance of recruiting new graduates or retaining experienced teachers when this offer is compared with the attractions of higher pay, better conditions and fewer discipline issues in Asia, Australia, Canada and the Middle East.
We brought to the table requests for a modest 4 percent pay rise to keep up with inflation; professional support and a small increase in remuneration for middle managers; health and safety provisions for duty staff in dangerous situations; reduction in class sizes to no more than 30 students (24 in classes with hazards) so that students’ individual needs can be met; free immunisation against contagious diseases; the Ministry to pay for laptops (rather than some Boards of Trustees paying and some not); and minimal extra funding to attract teachers to the hard-to-staff areas. 97% of our 18,000 members believed these were reasonable requests.
The Ministry has not engaged with our suggestions to address recruitment and retention issues and ignored our response to the intended erosion of conditions. Is this the same hearing problem that led to the demise of the community education night classes? Strike action seems the only alternative. The times we feel like the job is too much are times like these.
Ben Knoef, chairperson, GBHS branch PPTA
