'It is a crisis we can't ignore.'
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On Wednesday, NSW Teachers Federation members at Mudgee High School voted to walk out, pointing to the NSW Government's failure to address the teacher crisis.
A snap decision was made in response to the 'declining conditions' in the teaching profession after Rhys Kable, Teachers Federation Representative at Mudgee High School received a letter from a member asking if anything could be done in the lead up to the election to bring attention to the issues.
He said teachers are at breaking point.
"We did this to decry the [NSW] Government's failure to make any meaningful changes that affect the core causes of the teacher shortage," Mr Kable said.
Mr Kable revealed that Mudgee High School has had over 5,000 uncovered classes in the last 12 months due to the unavailability of teachers.
He said a satisfactory response would be for the NSW Government to accept the findings of the Gallop enquiry into the teacher shortage.
The report says a combination of "constant policy changes", increases in student needs, changes in technology and new compliance and reporting responsibilities and higher community expectations of what schools and teachers can do have created a crisis that cannot be ignored.
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"I spoke with a woman this morning who was unable to come on the walk out because she was on supervision duty and that would have been abandoning her duty of care...," Mr Kable said.
"She said she went home and cried herself to sleep that night. She had a breakdown...
"We are at breaking point. Everybody has moved their timelines up. I did a survey at our school specifically and it showed that... people that weren't even thinking of leaving the profession in the last five years are now considering leaving in the next 12 months.
"An unsettlingly high proportion of those [affected teachers] are in the support unit where our most vulnerable students are who need the most support.
"But because of the Government's inaction and the shortage that we have, those that need the most support are not getting what they deserve."
Teachers Federation President says failures are evident
NSW Teachers Federation President Angelo Gavrielatos was in Mudgee on Tuesday, 7 March speaking with local teachers and principals about staff shortages and what is at stake for the profession at the state election.
Mr Gavrielatos did not mince his words when it came to what he said was a failure by the NSW Government to act on advice about shortages in the teaching profession.
"I met with teachers and principals from the Mudgee and Gulgong area and like in all parts of the state the stories of the impact of the teacher shortage crisis were on full display," Mr Gavrielatos said.
"Quite frankly when you note the impact that these shortages are having on kids and their learning and wellbeing and teachers alike, these stories are heartbreaking.
"We know the cause of the problem, and we know the solutions but what is highly regrettable and what is totally unacceptable is that the government, the Perrottet Liberal/National Coalition, knew about this looming crisis years ago, knew of the causes of the crisis and deliberately failed to act and as a result of that our kids are missing out and teachers are burning out.
"There is no greater responsibility of a government than to assure a qualified teacher in front of every classroom, every day, every lesson. This government has failed.
"We've got far too many instances of kids being left in playground or libraries or school halls. Under minimal supervision or having their classes split or merged because of the teacher shortage. This is unacceptable, and the government was warned of this and deliberately failed to act. That's negligent."