Revised restructure: late again, flawed again

Was the oft postponed revised DET restructure worth the wait? DAVID FERGUSON reports.

On September 24, the Department of Education and Training (DET) finally announced a revised restructure proposal for the department. The release occurred three days out from the end of the school term.

This was the end point of a protracted wait for a replacement to the discredited June 2003 Lifelong Learning proposal. A revision was originally due on August 8, then August 29, then postponed that day to the week of September 15. It did not arrive. An email from Director-General Jan McClelland was sent on September 18, postponing the release for a further week.

In response to the continual delays, on September 19 Federation demanded that the proposal be released by September 24. At 10am on September 24 the revised proposal was at last released.

The revised proposal will still result in the slashing of 1000 jobs supporting schools and colleges. The proposal continues to be flawed because it is driven by the economic imperative to slash $60-70million from the Department of Education and Training budget.

The revised restructure only pinpoints 400 specific positions of the 1000 jobs to be cut. Of these, 120 jobs were said to be teaching service positions across schools and TAFE. The June 2003 proposal had indicated an intention to cut 300 such positions. Other positions, such as technology adviser and many vital clerical support positions remain under the cloud of an ongoing Corporate Services review. A further 600 positions are proposed to be cut through this process.

Since the June proposal there has been widespread opposition from teachers and communities across NSW. Five thousand submissions were received by the DET, very few with anything favourable to say. The Government's response to this torrent of criticism, however, has been largely to "shift the deck chairs on the Titanic".

Federation Senior Vice President Angelo Gavrielatos said: "The Government has failed to heed the most important criticism evident in the bulk of the 5000 submissions. It has not abandoned the plans to cut 1000 positions. When you strip away the spin, 120 positions [of the 400 positions pinpointed to go], over 25 per cent of the job cuts announced so far are frontline expert teacher consultants whose positions will be lost from the public education system."

At many meetings held with the DET, Federation has protested strongly about the proposed reduction in teaching service positions wherever this has occurred. The losses in equity programs, for example, which support our most vulnerable and needy students, are considerable. Multicultural Programs has lost 20 positions, Equity Strategy/Priority Schools has lost 12; while Gender Equity has been reduced from 11 staff to nine. Aboriginal Programs positions are said to be 'under review' and their fate unknown. Cutting equity programs is particularly disgraceful for a Labor Government which has laid claim to an interest in redressing socio-educational inequalities. All cuts are being opposed.

The revised restructure, however, still lacks detail. Schools and colleges do not know what expert support may be available to them. The number of consultants at particular education support centres (districts), for example, is unknown. The total number of positions in each region is subject to the "consultation" process. What remains clear is that the cuts will compromise the service and support available to schools and colleges and increase the burden on teachers, students and their communities.

A further consultation period of six weeks will conclude on November 4. No timeline for action beyond that date has been provided by DET.

All members are asked to oppose the cuts. Go to the DET Restructure campaign section on the Federation website and email the revised protest letter.

Federation and its schools and TAFE members will continue to oppose this educationally unjustifiable restructure.

David Ferguson is the President of the Officers, Consultants and Advisers Association.

TAFE concerns remain over restructure

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