Today our school community staff and students dressed in green to support our Principal.

We’re standing up for our principal! Today, all over Aotearoa, communities are standing up for their primary and intermediate school principals.

Why? After a long campaign, our teachers recently received an offer from the Government that recognised their skills and qualifications, and gave them pay parity with their secondary school colleagues. But the Government refused to do the same for about 2000 principals in primary and intermediate schools.

Principals do an amazing job for their schools and communities, and they deserve a collective agreement offer that reflects their considerable skills and responsibilities. And we need to value and support the role so teachers actually want to become principals – especially in our small and rural schools and kura.

If pay parity is fair for teachers, as the government has acknowledged, then surely it is fair for principals too.

What can we do? School communities are urging the Government to move quickly to propose a settlement that will address the issues that principals face and ensure we can attract and keep excellent leaders in these vital roles. For further information speak to our school NZEI rep, Paula Brown.