this post was submitted on 19 Jun 2023
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I will freely admit, I don't know a lot about these strikes and I do not have kids, however it seems like teachers strike multiple times a year. I can imagine the frustrating dealt by people actually affected, as I (and again this is my personal selfishness) am pretty fed up hearing about it all the bloody time.
It seems like they don't have an actual goal with striking, and just strike because it worked last time so why not do it again and get a few more cents added. Why not have a proper strike where they ask for a proper wage once and stick with it instead of these constant strikes?
It could just be the reporting or something, and again, I freely admit I don't know a lot of about it since it's such a constant stream of seemingly new strikes that I just pass right by it. I guess it's a bit like hearing car alarms going off constantly. I no longer pay attention because it happens so often.
There are two teacher unions. One union, which is for primary teachers, accepted an offer after strike action. The secondary school teacher's union rejected the offer and is thus continuing to strike.
It's not just about pay. Teachers are expected to do more each year with less, and with low wages. In-classroom, they have less help to deal with disruptive or high-needs students than they used to. Class sizes are larger, in class resources less due to lower funding, more admin, etc.
However pay is a big part. It is common for teachers to be working until 9 or 10 at night, and on weekends, with coursework prep, marking, and other administrative tasks. All of this is unpaid. And the teacher base is shrinking. Why is this happening do you think? Perhaps more pay and more help will encourage teachers to stay in teaching, instead of switching careers or jumping over the ditch.
This is important for all of us. The kids are suffering because the teachers are suffering. NZ educational outcomes will continue to fall if something isn't done, and this has nothing to do with the strikes themselves.
So the other person already explained about there being two teachers unions. An anecdote from me, I congratulated my primary kids teachers for reaching an agreement and getting some extra money. They said it's nice, but they actually were more interested in getting more teacher's aides, as they felt that is what they need for better results for the kids, and to enjoy their jobs more.