Wairarapa secondary schools will be closed tomorrow as teachers are again going on strike for better pay and working conditions.
Union members of the post-primary teachers’ association [PPTA] voted in an electronic ballot this week for a one-day national strike supporting their negotiations to settle their collective employment agreements.
Acting union president Chris Abercrombie said the PPTA and Ministry of Education had been in mediation since last week’s strike.
“If we think there is a genuine pathway to an agreement that members would vote for, then we would consider calling off [the] strike – it is in the Government’s hands.”
Local union representative and Kuranui College teacher Ryan McCroskery said the government has not made any serious offer since the last strike, which had attracted a heartening level of public support.
“It was really good to get out there and show how passionate we teachers are about education, and we felt appreciated by the public.”
From April 24, the first day of the next school term, PPTA members will not attend meetings outside school hours.
In the second week of next term, PPTA members will plan to roster different year levels of students home on various days for four weeks.
A series of rolling strikes are planned for the third week of term two, the week beginning May 8, when teachers will strike on different days in different regions.
Members will also continue to refuse to give up their scheduled planning and marking time to relieve absent teachers or positions that are vacant.
Had to push our way through this protest crowd on our morning drop off to the Montessori these teachers weren’t going to budge taking over the footpath as though they owned it not okay Masterton Teachers take your protest somewhere else very rude arrogant entitled lot.