Govt Attacked Over Teachers’ Pay

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32361, 29 July 1970, Page 18

Govt Attacked Over Teachers’ Pay

Criticism of the Government’s failure to adjust teachers’ pay scales to attract young persons to the profession was expressed at a meeting of the North Canterbury branch of the New Zealand Educational Institute last evening.

The meeting attracted the largest representation of members for many years, and was characterised by the tension and anger of teachers at the delay in a Government evaluation of teaching necessary to make it an attractive calling, the president (Mr D. Stewart) said in a statement after the meeting. Mr Stewart said the younger teachers clearly indicated their dissatisfaction at the fact that there had been no adjustment to the top of the salary scale for the ordinary schoolteacher since 1952, apart from ruling rates. This was in spite of education becoming a more demanding profession.

The effect of this could be clearly seen in the falling percentage of male teachers. Because the pay is too poor, young persons will not take on teaching, as shown by an analysis of men’s positions that were advertised, but unfilled, since February. Mr Stewart said that only the fact that teachers recognised the growing awareness of the public of the seriousness of the situation, and the expectation that the Government must recognise this in the very near future, contained the calls for action from the “more militant” members of the institute.

“The point was made consistently that a primary service which continues to get a smaller percentage of men, continues to have a high turnover of staff, and continues to get less than its share of the best brains available cannot do the job that faces education in New Zealand in the future.” he said.