Education Dept to meet Lange over threat

Press, 5 March 1988, Page 1

Education Dept to meet Lange over threat

PA Wellington The Education Department will talk with . the Minister of Education, Mr Lange, about his threat to extend the school year as a result of teachers’ strike action. i .■ ; I

The department's acting assistant director-general, Mr Peter Atkinson, said] there w;ould be some difficulty in extending the school year because it would mean asking teachers who had lost pay through striking to make up time. . I ; -I i ’| He could not comment further until the department had dis-] cussed the matter with Mr Lange. Under the Education Act, primary schools are required to stay open for a total of' 400 half!days each year. I : | If that did not happen the school term could be extended at the end of the ] year or the

Minister of] Education could waive the requirement under the act. i - / Mr Lange] said he was not disposed to waive that requirement if further "guerrilla action” by teachers I cut into classroom

Secondary teachers held a one-day strike this week against the State Sector Bill |and primary teachers will strike for tw r o days this month. j I The Wellington ] Education Board’s general Imanager, Mr John Lelliott, said] that although teachers had not been at schools, the schools had remained open with other school staff and some children attending] ds usual. Teachers had gone without pay during the strikes and it would be difficult legally |to make the schools stay open later at the end of the year, Mr Lelliott said. However, schciol] committees had enough of school closings and are calling ;on teachers to stop striking. I “Enough is enough,” said the Auckland School Committees’, Association president, Mr Joseph Peart.