NZEI Being Mischievous

  • Brian Donnelly
Associate Minister of Education (Early Childhood Education and Maori Education)

"The campaign being run by the NZEI to enable principals to remain in a collective contract whilst receiving access to supplementary grants is mischievous and can achieve nothing but mistrust between government and itself," the Associate Minister of Education, Brian Donnelly said today.

"The NZEI agreed to this arrangement in the recently concluded salary talks. The Institute should consider carefully the precedent it is setting by trying to relitigate an agreement of such recency.

"How would it react if the government suggested it would like to relitigate pay claims in light of the Asian crisis?

"There was no ideology in the government's position at the time of agreement. The matter was simple. The NZEI wanted the same arrangements as secondary principals. The government agreed to that request. All secondary principals were on individual contracts. The NZEI agreed with the government.

"The argument that there are fewer secondary principals in schools smaller than 300 pupils and that therefore different principles should apply is simple stupidity and lacks credibility.

"The coalition government has tried to work co-operatively with the NZEI and is disappointed that its leadership has taken such a destructive course of action."