NZEI Te Riu Roa calls for urgent mileage hike amid soaring fuel costs

NZEI Te Riu Roa calls for urgent mileage hike amid soaring fuel costs

NZEI Te Riu Roa is seeking an immediate increase in mileage rates for school and early childhood education relievers as the Middle East conflict drives fuel prices higher.

“This would ensure relievers are fairly compensated rather than being disincentivised from travelling to distant schools, preventing students in those areas from being disadvantaged by a lack of relievers,” NZEI Te Riu Roa National Secretary Stephanie Mills said.

In addition to the mileage rate increase, Ms Mills said NZEI Te Riu Roa was also asking the Government to:

provide free public transport for students and educators, alongside expanding school transport routes and making them more accessible to families with children travelling to attend early childhood education.

broaden the Ka Ora, Ka Ako school lunch programme to more schools and early childhood education services to support families struggling with higher cost-of-living pressures.

make a firm commitment in Budget 2026 to ensure the long-term retention of the school lunch programme to support student attendance and engagement in learning.

Ms Mills said the Government needed to clarify the status of educators as essential workers.

“The Government has said it wants all school and early childhood centres to remain open during all four phases of its fuel response plan. In that case, it needs to be clear that teachers, school support staff, and Ministry Learning Support staff also have essential worker status, and urgently discuss what this means for them and the wider education sector with us.

“We believe it is crucial that the voices of educators and their unions are listened to during this crisis,” Ms Mills said.

“Not only will educators be expected to bear the costs of this crisis, but they will also be supporting children, young people, and their families through a period of increased worry and economic stress.”

ENDS