Principals Stand Strong At The Start Of Term As After Hours Work Ban Begins

Primary and area school principals begin a two-month work ban starting 8am Monday 24 April, the first day of term two.

The work ban includes a pause on all Ministerial work that principals normally do, such as implementing the Curriculum Refresh, or collecting or collating any information on behalf of the Ministry. The ban also includes any work outside 8am to 5pm weekdays apart from board meetings, and all work on weekends. It does not include work that directly impacts on the learning and wellbeing of learners in their schools.

NZEI Te Riu Roa principal members voted in favour of the industrial action through a ballot earlier in the month.

“Principals didn’t take the decision to implement a work ban lightly but ultimately, to ensure that all tamariki across Aotearoa receive the best education, we need change,” says Mark Potter, President of NZEI Te Riu Roa.

“As a principal myself, I know that principals are stretched extremely thin. The unsustainable workload and the lack of movement on pay that reflects the complexity of the role means we cannot do our job to the best of our ability.

We are sending the message loud and clear to the Ministry that we need to address these issues for school leadership. It is also a strong reminder to the Ministry about the work principals do to support the wider education system and that it’s time for the Ministry to better support us.”

Negotiations for the new agreements started in the middle of last year, with area and primary school principals rejecting a second offer from the government in February. Principals joined teachers from primary, area and secondary schools, alongside kindergarten teachers, in an historic one-day strike on 16 March.

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