Kia ora e te whānau

The finish line is in sight, you are nearly there. Congratulations for grinding through the marathon that has been term 3! What a term it has been!

As we all ponder what the future holds, please take the time to truly unwind. Have a break from the tech for a while and put your cell phone in the bottom drawer - under the tea towels!  Focus on yourself and your loved ones.

I will be returning home to the Hawke’s Bay to spend some time with my family. I picked up some promising fiction from Unity Bookstore here in Wellington and plan a few days incommunicado, stretched out on the couch, head in a book. While international travel is impossible, I’ll transport myself to exotic spots, through an author or two, for some adventure and mystery.

The job of principal demands a lot of us and often as concrete, rational, and competent people. So, plan to balance the ledger and do the exact opposite these holidays. The recipe is a dash of silliness, a sprinkle of tasks that require a bit of risk taking and trial and error (but that promise fun and adventure), a good measure of selfish time when it is all about you, and a heap of connection time simply hanging out with your peeps.

Set aside thinking and planning for term 4. It will be upon us before you know. Make yourself and your family, your project!

Ngā manaakitanga

Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz

Message from Denise Torrey – Head of Union PPCB

Over the past month since launch, the PPCB staff have been incredibly busy on your behalf. The advent of PPCB is truly a watershed moment for primary principals. 

To those who have joined PPCB, thank you! I am delighted and new members are joining every day.  Principals can join PPCB at any time, simply visit the website to sign-up.

We have been in touch with NZEI to invite collaboration, but they have made it clear that they do not wish to engage. This is disappointing.  We have heard from the Secretary of Education, Iona Holsted, and this is what she has to say about PPCB and NZEI.

“.... the Ministry’s strong preference is for a multi-union collective agreement.  This would allow a single collective agreement to cover the entire primary schools' principals’ workforce which we consider would be the simplest arrangement for principals and school boards”

She goes on to say, “To achieve this would require a collaborative approach to bargaining between NZEI Te Riu Roa (as the union party to the current collective agreement) and the PPCB.”

A single bargaining process will occur with a single outcome irrespective of which Union principals choose to belong to, and while a joint claim is in the best interests of all principals, PPCB cannot force NZEI to discuss claims before bargaining-it may have to occur during bargaining in a three way negotiation. Despite NZEI’s current lack of engagement, PPCB is working to establish claims that carry all principals forward. As the Secretary for Education indicates, two unions can negotiate the collective and the best way to do this is through the establishment of a joint claim in the negotiation of a single collective agreement.

We’ll leave it to you to decide whether you support NZEI’s approach to a multi-union model.

PPCB will continue to extend the hand of collaboration to NZEI, however if they choose not to engage then PPCB will take our members demands into collective bargaining to win the best single collective outcome possible. Such an outcome will be in the best interests of all principals.

A practical response of support for PPCB and the multi-union model is a commitment to join PPCB. As a South Canterbury colleague commented this past week, there is nothing to lose and heaps to gain!

Such a response sends a strong message that collaboration not protectionism is the way of the future.

We would like to thank our members who took the time to fill in the draft claims survey. You have provided us with your voice and a wealth of information to help progress claims on your behalf.

The PPCB staff aims to visit members next term to share the PPCB draft claims and get members’ feedback. We’d also love to see any principal keen to learn more about PPCB to talk directly with PPCB staff. We will let you know the schedule of engagements through our facebook page, email, and website. We are looking forward to meeting with you all. Join us on facebook - PPCB Principals’ Bargaining.   https://www.facebook.com/groups/251508513648111

These are exciting times. We’ll be in touch with all principals soon to share draft claims and then to meet to discuss the claims to sharpen so that we can see genuine step change for primary principals.

Have a restful holiday break. 

Denise Torrey