The New Zealand Educational Institute Te Riu Roa (NZEI) hosted a paid union meeting in the Dunedin Town Hall yesterday.
About 500 members voted on whether to accept the Government’s offer, received late December 2022, which included a $4000 salary increase from December 1 last year, a 3%, or $2000, increase from December 2023 and paid overtime for after-hours duties.
Anderson Bay School deputy principal Anna Hailes said the offer did not reflect claims for reduced teacher-pupil ratios and extra support for staff.
"The Government had decided which claims they would address and which claims they would ignore.
"We feel unheard and undervalued," she said.
Staff shortages meant teachers did not have the capacity to cater for pupils whose needs required extra attention, Ms Hailes said.
"We hear from a lot of parents asking for support for their tamariki and we don’t have the extra support ... It feels disheartening."
Her message to the Government was simple: "Help us invest in the future ... We need to ensure our education foundations stand strong and if we don’t invest money into them, they won’t."
Fairfield School teacher Belinda Hoad said the results of the vote would made public in seven to 10 days.
If teachers rejected the offer, they would vote on industrial action.
