Greens candidate teacher Will Douglas stood down over schools climate change strike

A NSW public high school teacher who urged students to sign up for an activist-promoted ‘climate change strike’ has been stood down from teaching.

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A NSW public high school teacher who urged students to sign up for an activist-promoted “climate change strike” has been stood down from teaching.

Greens candidate for Bega Will Douglas attended a daytime youth forum at Moruya Golf Club alongside other politicians last week and urged students “Please, don’t forget March 15, the climate strike”.

The maths, science and English teacher is a casual teacher at Moruya High and said he attended the forum on his lunchbreak, with full knowledge of his school.

Stood down... Greens Candidate for Bega Will Douglas.

He told the audience of 12 to 25 year olds to get online and register for the school strike “because there’s a whole community out there wanting to support you guys, young people, in that strike’.

But after an investigation by the NSW Education Department, he was told he wouldn’t be offered more work.

The Daily Telegraph revealed last month the taxpayer funded ecoactivist charity Australian Youth Climate Coalition is orchestrating a campaign to pressure students to truant school, as well as pushing for teachers to get behind the action.

Today Mr Douglas defended his actions, saying he was on his lunch-hour and “I was just giving them some facts about climate change”.

Climate strike... Students at last year’s protest in Martin Place. Picture: Getty

“I was speaking on my own time in my lunch break as a Greens candidate at a youth forum,” he said. “Now I don’t have any work. It shouldn’t be this hard to speak up for climate action.

“I don’t shy away from my comments in any way, shape or form - climate change is the greatest threat facing all of us, most acutely young people.

“It’s not my job to tell students to strike, they will make up their own minds and have been clearly leading the debate.”

An education department spokesman on Wednesday said it wouldn’t comment on individual cases, but that officials were still inquiring into the matter and “staff members providing advice contrary to departmental policies may be subject to allegations of misconduct”.

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“NSW public schools are considered neutral places for rational discourse and objective study,” he said.

“While the Department understands students may be passionate about a range of issues, all students who are enrolled at school are expected to attend that school whenever instruction is provided.

“Students not in classes on a school day will be marked absent and may be subject to the school’s disciplinary code.”

Greens MP David Shoebridge said political candidates should be able to “speak out without their job being threatened”.

“This is especially important for public sector workers like teacher,” he said.

Students walked out of classrooms last November to demand government action on climate change.

“Will was talking publicly about climate change, at an event which was also attended by Andrew Constance (Transport Minister) who was on the public payroll. If this can be used to seriously threaten Will’s employment then there is something seriously wrong in this state.

“This was on Mr Douglas’s own time, during his lunch break and with full knowledge of his supervisors at work. We will be standing by Will and I would hope that the thousands and thousands who come out to rally for climate on Friday will also back him.

The news comes as the Australian Youth Climate Coalition steps up its campaign for the students to skip school on Friday, running classes in making posters and taking out full page ads in Nine Entertainment newspapers.