‘I’m a teacher of 20 years, here’s what I need you to know about the strike’

Liz Haggart has been a teacher for 20 years – now she’s written an open letter to parents explaining why educators across NSW are striking.

Dear Parents,

I’m sure you’ve heard all about the industrial action that teachers and support staff are undertaking. As always, the idea of striking can inflame emotions and raise tempers.

It’s not helpful, either, when everybody has an opinion, and wants to share it. But too often, it’s not teachers or other education workers who get heard in these debates. I’m writing this to change that. Here are some things I want you to know.

I want you to know that we love our job.

The education of young people, their academic success and personal development is so important to us. It is a responsibility that we take very seriously, and a privilege that we honour.

We treasure the little “light bulb” moments where they finally understand a concept after struggling to get it for so long.

And we celebrate the growth that we see from abseiling at Year 7 camp, even though they are afraid of heights, to walking across the stage at their Year 12 graduation having made it through 13 years of education.

The role we play in the lives of young people is vital. What we do matters and has far reaching effects.

Teacher Liz Haggart has written an open letter to parents regarding today's strike. Picture: Supplied/Liz Haggart

I want you to know that it isn’t solely about money.

Of course, money is important. Cost of living pressures are very real for teachers and support staff right now, just like it is for many other professions.

We need to be able to feed our families, keep a roof over our heads, pay school fees, afford petrol and pay utility bills.

But it is getting harder and harder to do this, on the current salaries we’re being paid.

I want you to know that our workload has become unsustainable.

Every day at school I am surrounded by colleagues who have reached breaking point.

I see new teachers trying to juggle everything from lesson planning, classroom management and meetings to parent phone calls, replying to emails, filling in a multitude of forms and trying to meet professional development requirements.

I see older, experienced teachers not being able to maintain the same energy and passion they had because they are so bogged down with extra admin tasks, with additional layers being added to compliance and registers and needing to learn yet another new technology system.

I want you to know that our schools are in crisis.

You may be worrying about your child missing one or two days of school, but what you may not realise is that the current education crisis is having a far greater impact on them than one or two days of missed school.

If nothing is done about the current teacher shortage then schools will struggle to operate in the same way and the biggest impact will be the outcomes for your children, our students.

As I’m sure you’ve heard, our working conditions are your child’s learning conditions.

Teachers will once again take to the streets to protest the state of their industry. Picture: John Grainger

I want you to know that these are not new problems.

The NSW Government and the Catholic Systemic employers have known about this for a very long time.

They have chosen to ignore those warnings and now we are facing the dire consequences of this choice. We understand that you are angry, upset, frustrated and disappointed.

We understand that having your children off school causes additional inconvenience to you. But, because of the care and dedication we show to your children, we have no other choice.

I want you to know that taking this stop work action is an absolute last resort.

The decision is not taken lightly by our unions or us, as members. Every other avenue has been tried and has failed.

We ask that you redirect your anger and frustration to those who have created this situation: the employers.

We are merely trying to save and protect the profession that we love and respect so much and ensure that we can provide your children with the education they deserve.

A teacher of 20 years, Liz has written a heartfelt letter to parents to explain what is going on. Picture: John Grainger

We want you to stand with us.

The Teachers Federation and Independent Education Union (IEU) are standing together for the first time with one voice for our profession.

While we would prefer to be in our classrooms, teaching your children, this is a historic moment.

It is a time of crisis. The full day stop work on today, June 30, is not, despite what you may hear, about lazy, whinging teachers and support staff.

It is about people who know the value of what they do – not just to themselves, but to the future of Australia. It is about people who want to make change happen to save our education system. Join us.

Liz has been a teacher for almost 20 years and has taught in a range of different schools both in the UK and Sydney. She is also a parent of two young children. She teaches at a 7-12 coeducational high school in Greater Western Sydney. Liz is the President of the Penrith/Blue Mountains Sub-Branch of the IEU and is a delegate to the IEU Council.

Originally published as ‘I’m a teacher of 20 years, here’s what I need you to know about the strike’