A tātou winitanga

In 2019, we made the message loud and clear – it’s time. Time to lead, teach and learn.

School Administrators are a central part of the operation of our schools and for too long this female dominated position has been undervalued by the Ministry of Education. This claim seeks to rectify this undervaluation and get admin staff they pay and recognition they deserve.

The pay equity process was the first proposed pay equity settlement for a Māori workforce in New Zealand history and included an average pay increase of 79%. The settlement also included a commitment to improving professional learning and development, a new parental allowance, an overtime allowance, better rules for progression and an updated work matrix to determine grading.

The success of any group always relies heavily on the strength of the leadership. Our primary principals are taking on that crucial role in our schools, ensuring that staff, students and parents all get what they need from the school.

In September 2017, NZEI Te Riu Roa lodged a pay equity claim on behalf of all teacher aides, providing evidence that their work is mostly done by women and that it was being undervalued as ‘women’s work’. In 2020 this claim was endorsed by the ministry.

Ministry of Education Support Workers were the first education sector group to achieve a pay equity settlement, setting the precedent to allow all subsequent claims to be possible.