NSW school staffing crisis hits Woodenbong Central School

Teachers Federation members at Woodenbong Central School in the state’s far north, have walked off the job over the negative impact the state-wide teacher shortage is having on their school.

NSW Teachers Federation Deputy President Henry Rajendra said staff walked out in frustration at the teacher shortages affecting most public schools in NSW.

“Woodenbong Central School has had difficulty covering the classes of absent colleagues because of the shortage of casual teachers,” Mr Rajendra said.

“The school has also suffered from an inadequate school counsellor allocation, leaving students without the appropriate support to meet their needs.”

“Our members are concerned that there is insufficient time set aside for preparation for their classes leading to unsustainable workloads.”

Mr Rajendra said the Gallop Inquiry into the work of teachers found earlier this year that uncompetitive salaries for teachers and unsustainable workloads are leading to teacher shortages.”

“The workloads of teachers have increased every year, but their salaries have fallen every year compared to other professions.”

“You can’t fix the shortages without fixing the wages and workload problem.”

“If we don’t pay teachers what they are worth, we won’t get the teachers we need.”