Loud.

Strong.

Together.

In a school or kura we are the people that do essential work alongside teachers and principals. We support ākonga in the classroom, manage school offices and administration, libraries and science labs and much more – our work is made up of many threads. We are essential but schools are not well funded enough by Government to employ us. But we can change this! Together we are building power to win improvements to our collective agreement – with fair pay, job security and the professional learning and development we need – the essentials!​

As educators, you play a vital role in the lives of tamariki and communities in Aotearoa. Campaigning for pay equity is an historic opportunity to ensure that educators are valued for the work you do.

The pay equity claim for teachers is currently underway. It is about addressing the historic and current undervaluation in both pay and status in roles that society has perceived to be ‘women’s work’. The process determines if there has been undervaluation and if so, this is corrected. All teachers and principals working in schools, kindergartens and education and care settings are covered by the claim, regardless of gender.

Early childhood teachers so an incredibly important job. But their pay is up to 52% behind kindergarten and primary with the same skills, qualifications and responsibilities. We believe the government needs to act now to fix the gap.

Tamariki in Aotearoa are missing out because learning support is massively underfunded. Together, we can push the government to increase funding so a child can feel connected, supported and valued at school or in their early childhood education.

Initial Teacher Education (ITE) plays a vital role in our education system, preparing future teachers with the knowledge and skills they need to begin teaching.