Mourning PPTA members wear black

Thousands of secondary school teachers are today wearing black to mourn the end of a collective pay agreement.

Ninety eight per cent of Post Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) members rejected the Ministry of Education's offer to settle the Secondary Teachers' Collective Agreement, which expired yesterday, the union said.

Many members today wore black to signify their frustration and disappointment at the ministry's failure to address their concerns.

PPTA president Kate Gainsford yesterday said both Prime Minister John Key and Finance Minister Bill English had said they expected pay increases to outstrip inflation, yet the ministry's offer - 1.5 per cent for the first year and 1 per cent the year after - was well below inflation.

"In real terms this amounts to a significant pay cut for teachers," she said.

She warned that as the economy improved teachers would leave the profession. A pay offer well below both inflation and expected wage rises in the private sector would do nothing to attract new teachers or retain current ones.

- NZPA