PPTA NEEDS TO RETURN TO THE TABLE WITH REALISTIC POSITION

The Government today re-iterated that negotiations with the PPTA can only resume if the union comes back to the table focusing on pay and conditions, and with no threats of industrial action.

"The Ministry of Education negotiators have had their door open to talk on pay and conditions since before the secondary teachers' strike at the beginning of April. They will not negotiate Government policy, or negotiate while industrial action is threatened. The door remains fully open on this basis.

"The leadership of the secondary teachers' union needs to back up the public talk of wanting to get back to the table, with action that shows it is serious about making progress. Game playing will not achieve a thing.

"There are many teachers who want to get the negotiations underway and who are serious about getting these pay issues resolved. We want to make a fair pay offer to teachers. It is now up to the PPTA to come back to the table in a serious frame of mind.

"The employment contract talks can only focus on pay and conditions issues. The pay talks have nothing to do with Government policy decisions on matters such as bulk funding, the number of teachers, the Treaty of Waitangi or teacher training," the Ministers said.

"There has been widespread condemnation of the union leadership trying to use the pay talks and teachers to further another agenda to control Government policy. We are disappointed at some of the comments from the PPTA President which seem to imply that the PPTA leadership may not have changed the position at all.

"Calling off the industrial action may have saved further public outcry against the PPTA leadership, but if the union is serious about getting a new employment contract settled for teachers it has to come back to the table with a realistic position on pay and conditions."

The Ministers reiterated the Government's position:

"We are willing to talk but the PPTA leadership must inform the Ministry that it will immediately call off all industrial action and threats of industrial action, both local and national, and agree to negotiate in good faith on pay and conditions matters. The PPTA should put to the Secretary of Education a realistic claim on industrial matters and remove all claims that are essentially items of government policy. Once these actions have been complied with, the Secretary of Education can quickly make an offer on pay and conditions."