As principal of a 500-student high school in Broken Hill, Grant Shepherd has many demands on his time. But lately, far too much of it has been spent finding teachers. Few come through the department’s once-trusty transfer system. University graduates aren’t interested in moving west.
Even a $20,000 incentive has not been enough to attract qualified staff. This year, he had to put someone who knows nothing about music in charge of a music class, and give a third-term HSC English class to a student visiting the west for the practical component of her teaching degree.
Teachers rally for a pay rise in Macquarie StreetCredit:Louise Kennerley
The system has historically had a surfeit of PE teachers, but Mr Shepherd can’t find one. There’s nobody to take his special education class. And he had to hand back $200,000 from the COVID-19 tutoring program because he could not find any spare teachers to spend it on.
“The once-stocked cupboard of teachers appears to be bare,” Mr Shepherd said, as he addressed an estimated 15,000-odd teachers and principals who rallied outside State Parliament House on Tuesday, having walked off the job for 24 hours to reject the government’s pay offer.
They gathered in Hyde Park and marched down Macquarie Street, wearing red, holding signs, and chanting “more than thanks”. Some had bussed from Newcastle and Wollongong, while regional teachers gathered in centres such as Bathurst, Dubbo and Coffs Harbour. Some 350 schools were closed due to the strike.
A major theme was shortages; one high school teacher told the crowd about having four classes doing nothing under so-called minimum supervision - otherwise known as a watchful eye - in the library because there was no-one available to teach them.
Another said they could not find qualified teachers for a school specialising in students with disabilities. Internal NSW Department of Education documents show more than a third of special education teachers do not have qualifications in the area.
The Teachers Federation argues only better pay and conditions will ensure the profession attracts enough recruits to stem a growing teacher shortage, particularly in some geographical regions - including parts of Sydney - and disciplines such as maths and science.
The shortage is predicted to get worse, as teachers retire, fewer students sign up to education degrees, and enrolments grow.
The federation wants a rise of between five and 7.5 per cent a year, plus two extra hours of planning time. The department has offered teachers the maximum under the government’s wage cap, 2.5 per cent.
The department argues the federation is exaggerating the shortage and says it has a plan to stem it, which includes poaching teachers from interstate, providing incentives to teach in the bush, and fast-tracking degrees for those switching from another career.
Ahead of the strike, Education Minister Sarah Mitchell accused the union of being an obstructionist protection racket that fought transparency, did not provide the representation teachers deserved, and was “hell-bent” on hanging students out to dry for political purposes. She said the dispute should be worked out in the industrial relations commission, where the government was waiting to negotiate.
The comments angered many teachers. Opposition leader Chris Minns accused Ms Mitchell of being inflammatory. “The emphasis here should not be on throwing mud, it should be on trying to fix this complicated situation,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Shepherd is still trying to find five teachers willing to move to Broken Hill to fill full-time positions in subjects such as maths, Japanese and hospitality. It feels like a never-ending struggle, and one that’s getting harder every year. But he’s not going to walk away.
“My community needs me to do it,” Mr Shepherd said. “The community relies on us. That’s why I’m here [at the rally].” But if a $20,000 incentive cannot attract a teacher to Broken Hill, why would a five per cent pay rise? “It’s about rebuilding the base [of the profession] - refilling the bucket of teachers,” he said.
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