Teachers start strike fund

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32604, 12 May 1971, Page 1

Teachers start strike fund

(Prom our education reporter) PALMERSTON NORTH, May 11. A major step towards setting up a fund of $500,000 as support for any future strike action by primary teachers received unanimous support yesterday from the annual meeting of the New Zealand Educational Institute.

Representatives of the country’s 20,000 primary teachers agreed to double their annual subscriptions from $l3 to $26 with most of the increase being set aside for the special purposes fund.

This fund, which is an ex tension of the emergency

strike fund set up last year, will gain $165,000 in the next financial year from primary teachers. The aim is fot $500,000 within five years. “We must have the money to back up any action that we might have to take," said the.executive officer of the institute, Mr G. A. K. Francis; The institute agreed previ-

ously that it would, on certain conditions, direct staff to withdraw from schools. Such a direction would apply where there was any risk to the health or safety of □tils and staff where school Idings were in question. The institute also has as a policy the withholding of the services of its members should staff room and administrative facilities be incomplete when new schools are opened by education boards. The only time in the last two years when strike action has been threatened over school buildings was >ver the Allenton Primary School near Dunedin: The institute threatened to remove the teachers from this school as they considered it a health risk because of its age, and condition. A planned replacement school was built ahead of schedule by the Otago Education Board , after this dispute.