INCREASED PAY FOR TEACHERS

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVI, Issue 23014, 4 October 1944, Page 4

INCREASED PAY FOR TEACHERS

New Scale Operative “Accepted Under Protest”

Payment of c.creased salaries to secondary and technical school teachers as a result of the revision of salaries announced by the Minister of Education (the Hon. H. G. R. Mason) last month, has been made in Timaru, according to information received yesterday. The Minister announced that the increases would be retrospective to February 1, 1944. The increases varied from 5 to 15 per cent with an average of about 8 per cent.

Nothing in the new scheme has removed the strong discontent which permeates the whol. service, and teachers have notified the Boards in other centres that they would accept the increases under protes", said an informant. Even if the new scale were satisfactory, it would be four years out of date, for it was based on the proposals made by the Government in 1939. These were not then acceptable to the teachers, and negotiations were commenced, but fell through as a result of the outbreak of the war. The old scale was that used in 1922 after the 10 per qent reduction had been made. This reduction was never restored. The new scale barelv restores salaries to the pre-1922 level. On a salary of £3OO in 1943 the total direct taxes were £5l/10/- as against nothing in 1922. On a salary of £4OO the tax in 1943 was £BO, as against £4 in 1922. The taxes included Social Security and National Security.

Although all sections of the community were bearing the burden of increased taxation, said the informant, fe. at present were receiving a reward for their work on the basis of the low 1922 scale. Even under the new rate the highest position for a married man, that of first assistant, carried a salary of only £6lO, and there was a very limited number of such positions. It was felt that there was little incentive to youth to take up teaching, with its long period of study, when for many years they would be on a non-livable salary, and have an ultimate possible objective of £6lO. In matters of pay t’.achers compared unfavourably with the professional division of the Public Service and at the nresent time with trades and even unskilled jobs. As stated by the Prime Minister, the present scale was not a final adjustment, and the executive of the New Zealand Secondary School Assistants Association was continuing negotiations.