PPTA takes legal action against MoE

PPTA takes legal action against MoE

Lawyers for the NZ Post Primary Teachers’ Association have today filed legal proceedings against the Ministry of Education, under the good faith requirements of the Employment Relations Act.

PPTA general secretary Kevin Bunker said the Association would claim the Education Ministry’s failure to abide by the interim recommendations of the Arbitration Panel was a serious breach of good faith.

“The Arbitration Panel – brought in to resolve the secondary teachers’ collective agreement dispute - clearly stated in its report that if the parties (PPTA and the Ministry) could not resolve the issue regarding the pay status of non-degree G3 and G3 equivalent teachers, it would reconvene to rule on the issue.

“Unfortunately we have not been able to resolve this issue, but the Ministry won’t agree to complete the arbitration process so we have had to pursue legal action on this issue.”

He hoped the case, filed in the Employment Authority today, would proceed quickly as the uncertainty was forcing affected teachers to seriously consider their future in teaching.

“For example, we received a letter yesterday from a highly competent and experienced science and physical education teacher, in the G3 equivalent category, who has resigned over the issue. He has secured a position paying $6,000 more than his teaching job, an indication that his non-degree qualifications were not an impediment to his employability.”

Kevin Bunker said secondary education, facing a shortage of at least 370 teachers next year, could not afford to lose one teacher, let alone hundreds of G3 teachers who were becoming increasingly frustrated and would be undoubtedly considering their options over the next few months.

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