Northern Territory teachers protest against global budgets for schools
Northern Territory teachers have taken to the streets to protest education funding changes on the same day they voted to accept a pay offer from the NT Government.
The pay offer was supported by more than 90 per cent of staff and includes a 6 per cent pay rise this year, followed by 3 per cent rises for the two following years.
Back pay for the rises has been a contentious issue, and the Department has offered to pay a 3 per cent rise from September, with another 3 per cent from November this year.
NT public employment commissioner Craig Allan said the deal would make the Territory's teacher amongst the best paid in the country.
"It will make the teaching profession competitive for recruitment purposes," he said.
But the Australian Education Union NT branch president Jarvis Ryan said the deal was flawed.
"The Government refused to guarantee staffing ratios, which would prevent class sizes being bigger than they need to be," he said.
Teachers take to the street to protest funding changes
The pay dispute had led to a number of strikes and protest, but teachers are still worried about changes to the funding model for schools.
The NT Government is moving to a system it calls global budgets, which takes away central decision making and makes schools responsible for their own budgets.
But Australian Education Union NT branch secretary Anita Johnsberg said global budgets were a smoke screen, and claimed some schools had had their funding cut by half.
"Principals are trying hard, they cannot make them work without cutting teachers, support staff, administrative staff," she said.
She described the changes as "savage".
"It's bringing public educaiton to its knees and it's inexcusable," she said.
Ms Johnsberg said more than 100 teachers were out of a job in the Northern Territory as a result of the changes.
"Some schools have lost up to 50 per cent of their staff.
"It's unworkable, it's inexcusable, this government has completely negated any kind of responsibility for public education.
"We've had cuts for two years, but these for us represent the death knell for public education in the NT, and we'd like an explanation on what the Government plans to do about this."
Ms Johnsberg defended the right of teachers to protest with signs which included doctored images of Education Minister Peter Chandler.
"We are still allowed to protest in the NT and I think we will protest for as long as it takes."
The Education Minister has been contacted for comment.
In September, he defended the changes to the education funding model.
"Global school budgets mean principals will be given a one-line budget, determined by the needs of their student population, for everything from staffing to operational expenses," he said.
"This new method will allow schools to design a workforce to meet their schools needs instead of trying to fit those needs around a staffing allocation decided in the Mitchell Centre."
