Tebbutt sees tough economic times ahead

By Kerri Carr

Education Minister Carmel Tebbutt has forecast that the "economic climate" in which the next round of salaries negotiations will take place "will be tough".

Addressing Federation March Council as the new Minister, Ms Tebbutt said: "I will flag that I will be open in the way negotiations are handled, I don't see any point in doing it any other way.

"I don't want to dampen expectations about the process, but there is no doubt the economic climate in which these matters need to be resolved will be tough, I think I'm being less than honest if I don't say it to you," Ms Tebbutt said.

"I think I'm being less than honest if I don't say that the Treasury has been constantly reminding all agencies that the budget expenses have been growing on average by six per cent while revenue has been growing by five per cent.

"There's no point in me not laying all the material on the table."

Ms Tebbutt said she looked forward to a positive relationship with the Federation.

"I know that it's going to have periods of time when we won't always agree but I think it's great to have an opportunity to work with a union that of course is a strong advocate for better conditions for its members but is also deeply interested in the many policy issues that underpin education and training in NSW," Ms Tebbutt said.

"What I do hope is that we can have a relationship whereby there is some shared understanding that largely those differences will be about how to get to certain objectives, or whether in fact those objectives are achievable within the constraints that operate both on the government and on the system that we oversee, rather than the actual objective itself," Ms Tebbutt added.

"I think that we all agree that what we want is a high quality public education system that's accessible to all, that responds to the diverse needs of our community, and that provides the foundations for lifelong learning. We will have debates about how we get there," Ms Tebbutt also said.

In reply to a question asking for an assurance that the NSW Government intends to "end the bloody mindedness and bitterness that has marked award negotiations in the past, and to have the new award in place by January 1, 2006", Ms Tebbutt said:

"I have to say it troubles me greatly to think that I have to go into a process where the pay negotiations will be as fraught with bloody mindedness, as you have put it, but as I put it, fraught with emotion and anger and distrust as what has happened in the past. I'm not sure if there is a way to avoid that because I think the only way to avoid it, well I shouldn't say the only way, but obviously some of it depends on what resources are available to pay the wage increase. I am hopeful that we don't have to go through that process."

Ms Tebbutt said she understood the importance of trying to get an agreement in place so that it is ready to roll from when the current award actually ends.

"I think it probably would be dishonest of me nonetheless to come along and make that commitment and say yes of course that's going to happen," Ms Tebbutt added.

"It's probably a reasonably easy commitment for me to make at this point but it might not be one that I can deliver on and I don't think that's a good start to our relationship.

"What I hope is that the negotiations can be productive, can be fruitful, can be conducted in a way that both the Federation and the Government can recognise some of the constraints on each other and that we do get to a point where we can put something in place by the start of next year.

"I would really like to see that, I will work have to achieve that, but I'm not going to give a commitment because it might not be something I can keep," Ms Tebbutt said.

Ms Tebbutt said she had "no intention" of denigrating the profession.

"I see no purpose for that," she said.

"I run the public education system in NSW, at the end of the day I'm the one who is responsible for it. It seems to me that the only way we can continue to deliver the good results is to try and keep morale as high as possible and that of course means that teachers feel valued and feel appreciated by the government and by the community," Ms Tebbutt said.

"All I would say is that it does trouble me sometimes that when the government can't deliver on everything that teachers would genuinely and legitimately like, but the government can't necessarily deliver, it is often translated as then being a denigration of teachers. I don't see that but I have no intention of making comments denigrating teachers."

Institute of Teachers

Ms Tebbutt said: "The Government is committed to the professional development of teachers and to continuing to enhance the quality of our education system.

"The NSW Institute of Teachers is one of the ways that we will do that; it's been established to advance the status and standing of the teaching profession.

"I acknowledge that you have some misgivings about it, they're not misgivings that I share, and I think that it actually will assist us to coalesce a greater degree of confidence and support in the education system."

"Can I just say that the institute and its associated standards are not driven by the view that there are significant problems in the system. The process has been underpinned by a desire to maintain current high standards into the future and to be able to demonstrate that," Ms Tebbutt added.

Aboriginal education

"The focus must be to ensure that the Review's momentum is maintained, that consultation is undertaken with Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal education outcomes are measured in schools, TAFEs and regional and head office," she said.

Ms Tebbutt announced she had asked the Director-General to re-establish the Director-General's Advisory Group on Aboriginal Education, with majority Aboriginal membership, and secondly that the Department of Education and Training would recruit a Director of Aboriginal Education at a senior executive level.

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