Friday, 28 February 2014, 12:58 pm Press Release: NZEI Te Riu Roa
28 February 2014
Immediate Release
Paid Parental
Leave is an affordable investment, NZEI Te Riu Roa
says
The best present the Government could give
babies and young children on Children’s Day this Sunday
would be to reverse its opposition to the extension of paid
parental leave to 26 weeks, NZEI Te Riu Roa says.
The
Select Committee report on Sue Moroney’s Paid Parental
Leave Bill released today includes official costings showing
the total net investment of taxpayer money would be less
than $250 million over three years. Finance Minister Bill
English claimed last year the cost would be $450-500
million.
NZEI Te Riu Roa National Secretary Paul Goulter
says the new official figures show extending paid parental
leave is an affordable investment. However, National MPs on
the Select Committee have continued to oppose the
Bill.
“ECE teachers know how important good bonding
between babies and their parents is,” he says. “It’s
time National Party MPs started to “walk the talk” on
the rhetoric about caring for children, and put party
politics aside to vote for something that will be good for
New Zealand families.”
NZEI Te Riu Roa members work in every community in New Zealand, leading and advocating for quality public education.
We are the 50,000 principals, teachers and support staff who work in primary, area and secondary schools as well as early childhood centres, special education and school advisory services. We come together as NZEI Te Riu Roa - New Zealand's largest education union, a Treaty based organisation and a powerful advocate for quality public education.
We have the most important job in New Zealand - educating for the future.
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