Queensland teachers strike as report reveals department has lost control of hiring
A teacher narrowly escaped serious injury when a student threw a brick at her during a lockdown, highlighting the dangerous conditions driving Queensland's teacher strike.
An aggressive South East Queensland student armed himself with a brick and attempted to force entry to a classroom to get at another student.
Lisa* was standing nearby, trying to negotiate the student off a fire escape landing when her attention was briefly drawn to another student.
With her back turned, the student threw the brick at Lisa, missing her by less than a metre.
A short time later, one of the students’ family members arrived amid the lockdown and hurled abuse at Lisa for refusing to allow them access to the school.
The incident was one of the many acts of violence Lisa has witnessed in the 20 years she has been teaching, and it is why she went on strike on Tuesday calling for better wages and conditions.
For two decades, the workload for Lisa and her fellow teachers and principals has ballooned, with many working 14-hour days to keep up with their teaching, administration and reporting obligations.
The long, stressful days are punctuated by spasms of violence and aggression from an ever-increasing number of students with behavioural issues.
“I have grave concerns for the wellbeing and ongoing workload of teachers and principals,” Lisa said.
“Respect for the profession is definitely something that I have seen changing.
“We have a government that thinks occupational violence is okay inside the school gate, a changing demographic of parents and a lack of resources for students with disabilities and additional needs.”
Lisa, who asked to remain anonymous out of fear she would face disciplinary action from the Queensland Department of Education, has worked in small regional and remote schools for most of her career.
They are schools with only a handful of teachers, so if one quits suddenly or falls ill, everyone’s workload increases.
Burnt out
Lisa said there are regional principals and teachers across Queensland who, because of staff shortages, have not had any non-contact days this year.
“What that means is they are going to be in front of their students from 9am to 3pm, five days a week, then they will have to plan, assess and report on all eight learning areas that we are required to report on,” she said.
“They will be completing any administrative tasks in their own time.
“I know plenty of principals who do a minimum of 14-16 hours a day, every day, just to get one day off on the weekend.”
Stress and injuries are taking a toll on teachers, with Safe Work Australia data showing a 715 per cent increase in Queensland teachers filing WorkCover claims for mental health injuries arising from workplace violence in the past decade.
When Tuesday’s strike was announced, QTU president Cresta Richardson said better pay and improved safety conditions were needed to address a critical teacher shortage across Queensland.
The strike came after union members voted to reject the Queensland Government’s latest enterprise bargaining offer which included an 8 per cent pay rise and a taskforce to investigate classroom violence.
Along with better pay, the union is pushing for clear protocols to address occupational violence and aggression, including giving teachers time away from their classes to recognise, respond to and report violence.
Union members want teachers to be given the same ‘public officer’ protections that are afforded to police, nurses and bus drivers so that convictions for assaulting them would carry tougher penalties.
They want more resourcing to support students who can’t cope with mainstream schooling and the right to exclude parents who are threatening or violent.
Members want these measures included in the EBA and not subject to changes in department policy
“Our members, school communities, and the Queensland public understand that the government’s offer doesn’t try to fix the teacher shortage crisis, make classrooms safe, or reduce crippling workload.” Dr Richardson said.
Government savages its own department
The union’s claims of a department out of touch with the needs of its teachers have been backed by an Auditor-General’s investigation.
In a report handed down on November 7, the Auditor-General found the department did not know how many teacher vacancies it had and many of its principals were too busy to file recruitment paperwork.
The recruitment strategy was found to be poorly designed, lacked data, analysis and planning, and lacked measurable goals.
It found the department was not monitoring its strategy or initiatives and could not assess their effectiveness.
At the same time, the department did not identify teacher skill needs across the system, such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
“Without this information, it is difficult for the department to set plans and strategies beyond the short term,” the report said.
Worryingly, it found schools in regional and remote Queensland were worse off, with the department failing to keep accurate staff records, and no accounting for a high percentage of early career teachers who need greater support and guidance.
It blamed the inconsistencies on the department’s decentralised hiring process that gives principals autonomy with how they spends their staffing budgets.
While the Auditor-General found the policy empowered principals to tailor hiring to the individual needs of their school, it made it difficult for the department as a whole to understand it long-term staffing needs.
When asked about report, a department spokesman said it ‘welcomed’ the Auditor-General’s recommendations.
“The Department of Education … is already strengthening strategies by improving the department’s central governance and data collection processes, streamlining teacher recruitment, and by implementing a longer-term strategic workforce plan,” he said.
“Improvements are expected to be implemented within the next two financial years, including expanding teacher vacancy data collection processes and providing greater guidance for schools around Permission to Teach and early career teachers.
“The Queensland government is committed to supporting programs that boost Queensland’s teacher workforce with a new workforce strategy already in development to help draw candidates to rural and remote locations, improve teacher retention rates, and address workforce needs in high-demand subjects.”
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Originally published as Queensland teachers strike as report reveals department has lost control of hiring
