Let's support teachers to support our learners
Tomorrow will see about 21,000 teachers taking part in a full-day national strike. Here in Aotearoa New Zealand, the teaching profession is overwhelmingly female. The current strikes (including the rolling ones last week) come on top of the Equal Pay Amendment Act 2025 in May, which wiped out 33 pay-equity claims, one of the largest claims being the teachers’, covering over 90,000 teachers and principals in primary, secondary and early childhood sectors.
However, this strike is not just about pay, it’s about working conditions. And the link between teacher working conditions and student outcomes is clear. As the Post Primary Teachers’ Association notes, “teachers’ working conditions are the students’ learning conditions.” When teachers face heavy workloads, insufficient resources, and ongoing systemic pressures, the quality of learning suffers. And unfortunately, those most affected are most likely to be the students who already face disadvantages – learners from disadvantaged backgrounds, students with additional learning needs, those from under-represented communities, etc. Inequities are amplified when the workforce is overstretched: the very students who rely most on dedicated educators are the ones who feel the impact most strongly.
Supporting teachers is about more than fairness to employees; it is about ensuring equitable learning opportunities for all students. When we value and invest in the predominantly female workforce that shapes the next generation, we strengthen the foundations of a fairer, more inclusive education system.
