NO APPEAL

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 54, 12 September 1928, Page 6

NO APPEAL

I TEACHERS' APPOINTMENTS . A PECULIAR CASE a> A plea ttiat teachers should have the right. Of appeal against nou-appoint--went was made by the Leader of the.. Opposition (Mr. H. E. Holland) when the Education Report was under discussion in the Houso of Eepres-cnta-tives yesterday. - _ [Last session,' said Mr. Holland, Mr. Atmore had moved an amendment which would havo given teachers the right of appeal against non-appoint-ment, but it was ruled out of order because it involved an appropriation. The effort to have the matter reconsidered was voted out and the position now .was that the teacher who was aggrieved by non-appointment had no •right of appeal. Last Christmas holiday's the position of assistant mistress at Greymouth School became vacant, and it was duly advertised by the Canterbury Education Board m the January number of the Gazette" in accordance with the regulations. . A lady teacher who was infant mistress at Cobden School applied for the Gieymouth position and was appointed. The board notified the Grey School Committee of the - appointment,- but^ the 'school committee Objected that there were on the school staff teachers more highly graded than the successful applicant who vvould have applied for the position had they known that the selected applicant would have been placed in charge of the side school. If that was so it must havo been that the Canterbury Board had not properly advertised the position. However, after having appointed the lady, and then being faced with the objection of the school committee, the beard reversed its decision, and in the meantimo the board had advertised as vacant the position which tho lady had occupied at Cobden, so that her Cobden position had gone. She had been appointed by tho board to tho Greyinouth position, and whon the school committee objectod the board reversed its decision; now she had no remedy or right of appeal against what had been done. Surely it was necessary to tako some stops to remedy a position of that kind. One might ask the Ministor to say to what extent a school committeo could over-ride a decision of the Education Board. Tho' Minister (the Hon. It. A. Wright): "It can't." The bigger question, said Mr. Holland, was where did tho teacher stand who oceupiod a certain position, saw another position advertised in the "Eduqation Gazette," took it for granted that everything in connection with the advertisement was in accordance with statute law and tho regulations, applied for the position, was appointed, the position which she previously occupied was advertised as vacant, and filled, and then the board's decision was reversed and she was donied the position to which she had been appointed, and the old position which she held was filled. There must be some remedy in a case of that kind. He submitted that the very fact that they had denie^the teacher the right of appeal against non-appointment left the teachor in such a position without any remedy at all. The Ministor said that ho would be glad to have the facts of the case from Mr. Holland *in order to go into them, because something was radically wrong. A teacher should not be placed in that position. Mr. Holland: "The Minister wrote a letter on 17th May." Mr. Wright: "I did not havo tho facts as the hon, gentleman has put them, and I would like to re-examino tho matter, because where a teacher applies for another position I have never known of a case 'like that before. If they did not receive the new position they wore not displaced from the old one. Certainly the position is wrong."