Today, like many other West Australian teachers, I'm not going to work this morning.

It's interesting that our industrial action is represented in the media as about pay. We're not striking over salary - we're striking because the system is broken.

My son has had no Phys Ed teacher all year. He's had a procession of relief teachers which, for a special needs child, is extremely distressing. He attends an inner city public school, but staffing shortages are statewide.

Speaking of special needs students, I'd like to look after my own without having to skip lunch to ensure their needs are met.

I'd like the Education Department to give me a personal device so I can do my job
(more efficiently). If I want a laptop, I have to lease one.

I'd like an acknowledgement of how teaching has recently become more difficult and demanding, especially during #COVID19, when we kept schools open and tried to keep students safe.

I enforced the mask mandate far more often than a rank-and-file police officer. I've probably been threatened and assaulted more times than many police officers too. And the statewide mobile phone ban? Guess who enforces that every single day.

So many of my colleagues have left teaching: re-trained or resigned due to burnout and stress. Who suffers? The students.

It's not about the pay. We're tired, and we need support. We're underfunded and under-resourced. We need to improve conditions for students. We need to fix the system.

#sstuwa #union #unions #industrialaction #teachers #teaching #westernaustralia #Perth #solidarity #FixEd #australia #stopwork #strike