Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu Early Childhood Teachers' Collective Agreement

This Agreement shall be known as the Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu Early Childhood Teachers’ Collective Agreement and referred to hereafter as the “Agreement”.

The parties to this agreement shall be:

1. 1. the Secretary for Education acting under delegation from the Public Services Commissioner made pursuant to section 592 of the Education and Training Act 2020 and clause 6 of Schedule 3 of the Public Service Act 2020 and acting in accordance with section 586 of the Education and Training Act 2020.
   2. the New Zealand Educational Institute Te Riu Roa (“NZEI Te Riu Roa” or “the union”).

The Agreement is a Collective Agreement made pursuant to Part 5 of the Employment Relations Act 2000(external link) and shall be binding on:

1. each employee who comes within the coverage clause and who is or becomes a member of NZEI Te Riu Roa.
2. Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu Board of Trustees (“Te Kura” or “the employer”).

This agreement covers work undertaken by teachers, as defined in 1.7 below, employed in the Early Childhood Service of Te Kura.

The term of the Te Aho o te Kura Pounamu Early Childhood Teachers' Collective Agreement 2022-2024 shall be effective for 24 months from 1 December 2022 to 30 November 2024, except as provided for under s.53 of the Employment Relations Act 2000(external link).

The parties agree that the terms and conditions contained in this agreement may be varied at any time by written agreement between NZEI Te Riu Roa and the Secretary for Education, acting under delegation from the Public Services Commissioner. Any such variation agreed shall be binding on employees and the employer of those employees covered by this agreement in accordance with section 586 of the Education and Training Act 2020 and the Employment Relations Act 2000(external link).

The following definitions apply for the purposes of this agreement unless specified otherwise:

1. 1. “Teacher” means any person who is employed in a teaching position in the Early Childhood Service of Te Kura. Teachers must be fully certified, provisionally certified or certified subject to confirmation by the Education Council. For clarity this includes teachers who hold designated management responsibilities.
   2. “Reliever” means any teacher employed on a fixed term basis to replace a teacher who is absent from an established position. Such absence may be for any reason including leave, on assignment or acting in another position. More than one reliever may be employed to cover the absence.
   3. “Short-term Reliever” means any reliever employed for a period that does not exceed three school weeks.
   4. “Fixed-term Teacher” means a teacher employed on a fixed term employment agreement:
      1. as a reliever to replace a teacher who is absent from an established position, or
      2. to carry out specific assignments, or
      3. as a short-term reliever where the period of engagement does not exceed three school weeks, or
      4. to meet fluctuations in the normal workload.
   5. References to “any time when Te Kura is officially closed for instruction” in this agreement shall be deemed to mean the term breaks annually gazetted for composite schools.

Pursuant to section 595 of the Education and Training Act 2020 the Secretary for Education acting pursuant to the delegated authority of the Public Service Commissioner has declared that all the conditions contained in this collective agreement are actual conditions of employment provided that the Secretary for Education may from time to time give approval to the salary rates or allowances being treated as minimum rates where there is agreement to this between the employer and any of its employees.

1.9.1 The parties to this Agreement recognise the value in their ongoing and productive relationship, including their joint efforts to give effect to building an environment in which the teaching profession is highly regarded, sustainable, and is fit for now and the future of learning. Collective bargaining is a key part of those joint efforts.

1.9.2 In recognition of the benefits arising out of the parties’ relationship, including NZEI Te Riu Roa’s role in negotiating terms and conditions for teachers, and the contribution of NZEI Te Riu Roa and its members make to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic response, each full-time teacher who is a member of NZEI Te Riu Roa and is bound by this Agreement as at 3 March 2023 will be paid a one-off gross payment of $750.

The payment will be pro-rated for part-time teachers based on their full-time teacher equivalent (FTTE) on 3 March 2023.     

Short-term relievers, as defined in clause 1.7(c), bound by this Agreement and who are members of NZEI Te Riu Roa on 3 March 2023 will receive the payment based on the proportion of the total number of available working days in 2022 that were worked, provided at least 1 day of short-term relief teaching was worked in Term 4, 2022.  

Teachers who are members of NZEI Te Riu Roa and are bound by this Agreement as at 3 March 2023, who on that day were on approved unpaid leave under Part 4 of Agreement, will receive the one-off gross payment of $750, on the return to their position providing that they return on or before the end of Term 2, 2023 or on or before the end of Term 4, 2023 for those on parental leave. The payment will be based on the calculation for the position that would have been applicable on 1 March 2023 had they not been on approved leave. 

A teacher may be eligible to have the payment calculated under more than one category. However, no eligible teacher will receive a total gross payment that is less than $75 or more than $750.  

Further payment – all employees

1.9.3 A further one-off gross lump sum of $500 will be paid to all full-time teachers employed on 1 December 2023.  

The payment will be prorated for part-time teachers based on the FTTE on 1 December 2023 and for short-term relievers based on the proportion of working days available in 2023 that were worked by the teacher, provided at least one day of short-term relief was worked in Term 4, 2023.   

Teachers on approved unpaid leave under Part 4 of Agreement on 1 December 2023, will receive the one-off gross payment of $500, on the return to their position providing that they return on or before the end of Term 2, 2024 or on or before 30 November 2024 for those on parental leave. The payment will be based on the calculation for the position that would have been applicable on 1 December 2023 had they not been on approved leave. 

A teacher may be eligible to have the payment calculated under more than one category. However, no eligible teacher will receive a total gross payment that is less than $50 or more than $500. 

Note: Clause 1.9 and the following guidance will be removed in subsequent collective agreements.

Guidance based on the employment type and for teachers on leave