Bark art to boost teacher campaign

THE wife of Yothu Yindi frontman Dr Yunupingu will back NT teachers campaigning against job cuts at a rally in front of Parliament House.

Yalmay Yunupingu

THE wife of Yothu Yindi frontman Dr Yunupingu will back NT teachers campaigning against job cuts at a rally in front of Parliament House.

Australian Education Union president Matthew Cranitch said it could be "one of the largest protest rallies held in Darwin".

The union is hoping about 1000 people will attend.

"Teachers feel so strongly about this issue that we're expecting very strong numbers," Mr Cranitch said.

Yalmay Yunupingu will hand over a bark painting symbolising the importance of education. Her late husband was the first Aboriginal person from Arnhem Land to earn a university degree and had been principal at Yirrkala school.

The Government will cut 35 teaching positions next year. Changes to teacher-student ratios will divert 63 additional teachers to early childhood education, but middle and high schools will lose educators.

Mr Cranitch said teachers could take strike action next month.

"We won't stop. We'll continue to agitate. We're in for a long campaign," he said.

Mr Cranitch said the union - which is also attempting to negotiate a new enterprise bargaining agreement (EBA) - was not arguing about money.

"Instead, we're asking for our students to be well resourced," he said.

Education Minister Peter Chandler said he respected the union's right to take industrial action, but school-staffing formulas were not part of any new enterprise bargaining agreement.

"The Commissioner for Public Employment has put forward a reasonable offer and the AEU has publicly admitted teachers are happy to accept that offer," he said.

"Job security is a priority for this Government and the proposed EBA offers stability over four years.

"This will be comforting for the 330 contract teachers (who) have been made permanent under this Government."