Running New Enterprise Head Agreement
Enterprise Bargaining leads to improved conditions The AEU has achieved improvements in a range of areas Meal Breaks
Non-Instruction Time (NIT)
The Award now contains provisions that require teachers to be provided with a continuous and unbroken meal break each day. The meal break must be a minimum of 30 minutes unless the teacher has yard duty, in which case it may be reduced to 20 minutes. School timetables must be designed to ensure that meal breaks are provided.
A teacher shall be entitled to the minimum amount of NIT per week, which must be allocated in lesson blocks of no less than 30 minutes. The agreement continues to prescribe the minimum amount of NIT that a teacher must receive each week. NIT is defined as preparation of lessons, assessment of student work, report writing and curriculum development and includes admin time for leaders. The NIT must be provided during school hours, which has been defined as the 1600 minutes of instruction time in schools. If a teacher is required to undertake other duties during their NIT then these arrangements must be negotiated with the teacher. The requirement to undertake other duties does not reduce a teacher’s entitlement to a minimum amount of NIT. The trading of NIT for electronic equipment or other items or to secure increased resources for class budgets is not to occur.
Face-to-face Teaching The maximum weekly face-to-face teaching time for teachers continues to be defined in the enterprise agreement (See clause 5.2). The maximum face-to-face teaching time has been reduced for primary school deputy principals in schools with less than 235 students providing increased leadership time in these primary schools. Face-to-face teaching must now include assemblies, care group or roll class, supervised eating time, supervision of withdrawal rooms and sports coaching if required as part of the curriculum. A teacher cannot be directed or required to average their face-to-face teaching hours. If they do, it must be reasonable, fair and equitable. The school PAC must make this assessment and criteria to assist the PAC in making such determinations have been agreed. If a situation occurs where a teacher is required to work in excess of their face-toface teaching time and they are not provided with additional NIT within an agreed period they will be eligible to receive an additional payment for the hours worked.
Relief lessons above face-toface teaching load In circumstances where a TRT or PRT cannot be engaged a teacher may be asked to undertake a relief lesson that results in their face-to-face teaching time exceeding the prescribed maximum. In such circumstances the teacher must agree to undertake the relief and must be provided with the equivalent amount of NIT as soon as practicable but within 10 days, and at a time agreed between the teacher and their manager. If the NIT cannot be taken in that agreed period the teacher will receive an additional payment for the hours worked.
Class Size The agreement continues to have class size provisions (see clause 5.3.5). Additional provisions are contained in the agreement to protect the workload of teachers in NAP units. If a class has a student with an individual learning plan or students with other special needs, the PAC must plan for the minimum class size possible. Criteria to assist the PAC in making this determination have been agreed and are contained in the agreement. A teacher, principal and the PAC must agree if the class sizes in any particular class is to be greater than that prescribed in the agreement (clause 5.3.5). If a class size is to be increased it must be consistent with the equitable distribution of duties between the teachers of the school. Class sizes must be planned on the minimum number of students possible and to ensure that the working environment is safe and without risks to health.
Other Duties Other duties undertaken by a teacher must be consistent with their role. These tasks must be also negotiated with the teacher. Other duties that might be part of a teacher’s work include:
• Preparation of lessons, assessment of student work beyond NIT entitlement • Student reports • Curriculum development • Parent teacher interviews and parent consultation • Managing class-based student records which are for those students that a teacher is responsible for • Yard duties • Student health and wellbeing • Recording student attendance • Participating in performance management • OHSW as it relates to classroom practice Further work is to occur on identifying how other tasks undertaken by teachers but not part of the above list can be reassigned or better managed.
Education Plans Teachers must be provided with adequate release time to liaise, develop and write an individual education plan having regard to the teacher’s total workload. The Department agreed before the Industrial Relations Commission that they would introduce a ‘one plan model’ for 2013 so as to reduce the administrative burden and workload for teachers. The ‘one plan’ has not been produced and they have not consulted with the AEU on this matter.
Meetings Attendance may be required at one staff meeting per week, which could be a whole staff meeting or smaller group meetings such as year level, pastoral care, sub- school, faculty, subject, curriculum etc. Meetings should not extend past 5.00pm. It is agreed that times immediately before school, recess and lunch time should generally be times for unstructured staff interaction and preparation. Routine information should be managed by daily notices and emails. The PAC must monitor the frequency and length of meetings to ensure that workloads are reasonable and that staff n have work life balance. 15