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Kia ora e te whānau
As NZPF works towards the launch date for the Primary Principals’ Bargaining Collective (PPBC), I want to acknowledge the courage of the NZPF Executive who have supported a significant innovation for principals.
Such courage cannot be underestimated. It is no easy thing to strike a path away from convention. I am particularly proud of their professionalism in leading positively.
The NZPF Executive has responded to the call from members to establish a bespoke voice at the bargaining table. The NZPF Executive recognise that not every principal wishes to be part of this new enterprise, nor do they insist on this. In any healthy democracy individuals have the right to choose who represents them. In the workplace this right is enshrined in the Employment Relations Act.
In establishing PPBC, NZPF has created an alternative to the single Union model. NZPF supports a modern and collaborative view of the principle of collectivism that underpins representation in the workplace. NZPF believes that a higher quality of outcome is generated when the two bargaining parties (PPBC and NZEI) work together with the interests of principals at heart. The capacity for two sector-based bargaining parties to negotiate and agree on priorities before going to the bargaining table is a strong design. We are in essence ‘stronger when we act together’. This is exactly what occurs in the bargaining for the Secondary Collective Agreement between PPTA and SPANZ.
It is pleasing to note that PPTA and SPANZ coexist in a professional, mature, and respectful relationship. The relationship is not always plain sailing but the initial beating of drums that occurred when SPANZ Union launched in 2007 has long since fallen away.
Having PPBC and NZEI at the bargaining table together keeps both parties sharp and focused on the very best industrial outcomes for all principals. NZPF chose this approach because principal voice has been diluted within past bargaining. In the last bargaining round NZPF was not invited to contribute.
Going forward NZPF do not want to simply be consulted or subject to participation by invitation within NZEI’s bargaining process but rather be a legitimate party to the Collective and within bargaining so that the voice of principals has reach and presence.
Such an approach has its risks and rewards; risks include that PPBC would bear shared responsibility for the outcome of any bargaining round, and rewards include the shared satisfaction of working alongside NZEI to win better conditions for principals.
NZPF has purposely designed PPBC to enable principals, who wish to also be members of NZEI, the ability to do so. The law enables this. No person can exert ‘undue influence’ on another regarding Union membership. Workers are free to belong to any representative Union or more than one representative Union. PPBC represents an option for the many principals who want a stronger bargaining process to focus the industrial process on principals’ interests, an area of advocacy necessary given the vulnerable nature of principals in the employment construct and facing the constant challenge of being cast as the employer not an employee.
To this end NZPF is working towards a launch date of Monday 30 August when the PPBC website will go live. The website will communicate details of the PPBC’s goals, services, staff, timetable of work, comprehensive FAQs and e-sign up.
PPBC has been well costed and is fiscally viable. A real-world analysis of costs incurred by SPANZ who have significantly fewer members than that anticipated by PPBC has been completed. SPANZ provides excellent negotiating skills at the secondary principals’ bargaining table for their small fee ($11 per fortnight). With significantly more members than SPANZ and based on clear historical financial data, the NZPF executive is confident that the pricing of $9 per fortnight enables a strong offering.
In addition to the option of belonging to PPBC, NZPF strongly suggests that primary principals protect themselves within their employment relationship by enrolling in the Principals’ Advice and Support Scheme Limited (PASL). This legal insurance scheme is wholly owned by NZPF and does an outstanding job providing a comprehensive helpline and legal cover of up to $25,000 in instances where a principal requires legal support and representation. Over 1200 principals currently belong to this scheme.
NZPF is proud to be able to offer a suite of services to primary principals, in the professional, industrial, and legal spheres. PPBC and PASL are not compulsory, they are optional extras available to NZPF members. They create choice for principals, an opportunity that clearly has excited a significant number of members.
The NZPF Executive has worked hard to create opportunities for principals to be much better served in every sphere of their work. They are excited about the future of Collective Bargaining for principals and ultimately look forward to the PPBC bargaining team rolling up their sleeves in partnership with the NZEI team to face the Ministry of Education across the table and do their absolute best for all principals of Āotearoa New Zealand.
New NZPF Executive Member
In light of Martyn Weatherill’s resignation from the NZPF Executive, I would like to thank him for his service and extend a warm welcome to Jen Rodgers, Principal at St Clair Primary School in Dunedin. Jen is the next highest polling candidate in the previous election and will serve to the conclusion of 2021. It is good to have another southerner in the mix and having previously served on NZPF, Jen is well poised to add value.
Ngā manaakitanga
Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz
NZPF Conference - Rotorua
This year's conference theme is Power, Passion, Pace; Pai tu Pai hinga! Whakamaua kia tina! This signifies a need to renew, refresh and move ahead after an unusually fragmented year in 2020.
The conference will be held at the Energy Events Centre, Rotorua on 2-4 August 2021.
For further details and to register for the conference, please go to www.nzpfconference.com.
Nominations for NZPF Election 2021
Nominations are open for the NZPF President, Vice President and 11 Executive committee members.
Click here for the form to nominate candidates for President and Vice President for next year.
Click here for the form to nominate candidates for the executive committee for the next two years.
Nominations close on 5 August. The electoral roll closes on 25 August. Your subscription payment must be received by this date in order to be eligible for voting.
NZ Principal Magazine also Online
You and/or your team members can easily access the NZ Principal Magazines online, as an e-magazine or as a PDF. Additionally you can search for a previous issue, an article by title or by the author of the article. All magazines back to Term 1 2012 are available in this format. To view or search click here.
Banking Staffing Update 25 June 2021
5 Year old Cohort Entry Considerations when predicting next year’s roll numbers.
Children turning 5 from 10 Feb to 1 March this year will not appear as enrolled Y1s on Table M1, which MOE uses as their initial prediction for the number of year ones you will have on 1 March next year.
That initial prediction also generates the year 1 Adjustment for next year. (Initially 11/12ths of the Year 1 prediction)
Cohort entry schools might therefore like to examine the enrolments arriving by 15 March mid point date, to identify the number of year 1s who would have been enrolled from 10 Feb to 1 March inclusive, then including this as a separate, clearly identified y1 cohort prediction somewhere when filling in the July Supplementary questions web form y1 prediction from table M1.
Similarly, use the same identified y1 cohort number to enter as the Y1 cohort prediction somewhere for the Y1s likely to enrol from 1 March to 10 October, as well as using the Y1 roll from Table M1 in the usual box for Y1 enrolments 1 March to 10 October prediction.
Hopefully this will alert resourcing to ensure your y1 staffing prediction is treated in the same way as non cohort entry schools. This flows on into your September initial calculation funding, which uses the provisional staffing generated by the July predictions to decide the initial per pupil funding.
Now to the July 1 Roll Return Table J1 which MOE uses to predict Next year’s Y2 and above numbers.
When entering your year 2 prediction I suggest you provide 2 roll numbers-
- The y1 roll from table j1
and clearly identified as a cohort entry number:
– An estimate of the y1 number of Year ones turning 5 from the 9th June to 1 July inclusive who will not be enrolled until 12 July next term and therefore do not appear as Y1s on table J1 for rolling over as next year’s Y2s.
The cohort entry section of the MOE website does discuss funding corrections resulting from the reduced July 1 roll count, but I cannot find any mention of provisions/guidance for March Funding or staffing prediction guidance. Maybe there will be something in the Supplementary Questions format to help.
Finally, in recent weeks I have used the above with the staffing calculator in cohort entry schools to find instances of possible reductions in provisional staffing in cohort entry schools with rolls 300 to 500 of 0.5 fttes to over 1 ftte per pay period if some children are not able to be counted compared with non cohort entry schools. The situation could mean a loss of about 0.6 staffing in MACS schools with provisional rolls under 176 if uncounted pupils on M1 and J1 reduce staffing to a multiple of 25.
Gavin Price gavin.price@xtra.co.nz NZPF Life Member 027 607 6220
VLN Primary School - Registrations Invited for online programmes starting Term 3
Extend curriculum choices for your learners and increase your schools confidence and capability in online and distance learning.
A wide range of language programmes available including te reo Māori and Kapa Haka, Digital Technology, Gifted & Talented, Creative Arts, Science & Maths and Literacy.
All NZ children are welcome to learn with the VLN Primary - Nau Mai, Haere Mai!
Registrations close Monday 28th June
Find out more and register your interest online or contact primary@vln.school.nz with queries.
Rachel Whalley, VLN Primary School
NZPF assures its business partners that, as members, you will contact them to have a conversation if you are purchasing products, services or solutions for your schools that a business partner supplies. Please support our partners as their assistance to NZPF means better membership services to you.
