September 2007

KEY POINTS:

• Negotiations for the renewal of the Primary Teachers’ Collective Agreement began on 7 August 2007. There have been ten days of negotiations since then.
• Some progress has been made but a number of key issues remain unresolved. Bargaining will now continue into term four.
• A more detailed update will be sent to members in week three of term four.

ACTION:

Worksite representatives:

• Please share the contents of this newsletter with your teacher colleagues.
• It remains our intention to convene meetings of all teacher worksite representatives in the period October 29 – November 9. We will send you the details of the meeting in your area early in term four.
  

ENQUIRIES:

For further enquiries contact your local NZEI Te Riu Roa field staff officer, NZEI regional office, or NZEI national office.

 

17 September 2007

Dear members

To date there have been ten days of negotiations for the renewal of the Primary Teachers’ Collective Agreement. Reasonable progress has been made on some key issues but others remain unresolved. Negotiations will, therefore, continue on into term four.

The negotiation of the PTCA is taking place concurrently with the PPTA’s negotiations for the renewal of the Secondary Teachers’ Collective Agreement. As you may have noted in the media, the secondary teachers’ industrial action scheduled for 12 September was called off, apparently due to progress in those negotiations. Subsequently it was announced in the media that secondary teachers had been offered increases of 12% over three years plus a one off lump sum payment of $750. The source of that information is not clear.

There was then a further PPTA press release announcing that secondary bargaining was continuing and a number of issues were still being worked through. By the time you receive this newsletter there may well have been further press releases and/or media comment or speculation about that process.

NZEI has, meanwhile, continued to pursue the bargaining priorities identified by primary teachers. Your negotiating team has advised the Ministry’s negotiators of our intention to report back to members whatever point we have reached in bargaining by 19 October. That report back will be followed by meetings with teacher worksite representatives in the fortnight from 29 October to review bargaining progress and members’ reactions to the report back.

NZEI appreciates your continued patience and support while we work through the key issues at the bargaining table.

Kia kaha, kia toa, kia manawanui

Neil Hammond and Jane Porter
Advocates

 

For office use:

NZEI Negotiations PTCA 2007/6
Page 2 of 2
To: All Primary Schools
Files: 325.05