WA teachers’ union hails curbs on hiring by principals

The WA teachers’ union wants more changes to the independent public schools system.

WA Education Minister Sue Ellery.

The teachers’ union in Western Australia will lobby the Labor government for more changes to the state’s popular system of independent public schools after notching up a win aimed at curbing the power of principals to hire the best teachers.

Responding to concerns of a two-tier education system, Education Minister Sue Ellery has told WA’s 524 independent schools they must now “consider” hiring ‘‘redeployees’’ from the Education Department’s pool of staff whenever there is a vacancy.

Until now, principals of independent schools have had autonomy over hiring — a key feature of the IPS system that has allowed some schools to thrive by recruiting teachers who are most appropriate for their needs.

State School Teachers Union president Pat Byrne yesterday ­described the new policy as “a first step” and said the union would lobby the government to make more changes, including ensuring all independent schools take on redeployed teachers when they are asked to.

“IPS schools now have the ­opportunity to locally select,” she said. “They would still be able to do that but it would mean where they have a vacancy and the ­department had a permanent teacher it needed to place, then every school would be equally ­expected to take that teacher on.”

Ms Byrne said with 525 independent public schools out of 830, the system had reached a tipping point. It was unfair that the responsibility of hiring redeployees — which includes women returning from maternity leave — had fallen largely to non-IPS schools.

Ms Ellery, a former trade union official, said the IPS system — which began in 2009 under the Barnett government — would continue under Labor. She denied any change to the autonomy of decision-making by independent schools.

“The change is that they are now required to demonstrate they have considered a suitable match from the redeployment pool, if one is suggested to them,” she said.

“Principals of independent public schools retain the ability to select the staff best suited to their school’s needs.

“The small number of non-IPS schools also deserve access to the best teachers and school staff, and the two-tiered system needed to be addressed.

“I supported the IPS system in opposition and I continue to support it in government and I expect it will continue into the future.”

WA Primary Principals ­Association president Ian Anderson welcomed the change, saying it would likely lead to more IPS schools hiring redeployed teachers. “The minister is very aware of the equity issues across the system,” he said.

Opposition education spokeswoman Donna Faragher said she was concerned that the move was a precursor to bigger changes to the system. “My biggest concerns would be if principals lost the ­opportunity to select teachers and administrative staff who best meet the needs of their students and their schools,” she said.