Member for Murray Helen Dalton has put her support behind teachers as other ministers call the strike 'disruptive'

Teachers across the state joined in a day-long strike to campaign for fairer wages and manageable workloads to ensure teaching remains an appealing profession and stops dissuading potential educators.

Some members of the state government, including Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell, condemned the strike on the basis that it would be disruptive to students.

Mrs Dalton rejected that.

"Students across my electorate have been missing hundreds of classes every term, due to the chronic shortage of teachers," she said.

"That's more disruptive than a single day strike. The Government has ignored the rural teacher shortage for ten years."

RELATED

Griffith Teachers Association president Jenna Woodland described the disruption argument as victim blaming.

"That sort of victim blaming is atrocious. At what point do we draw the line and say stop blaming the people who are affected most?"

Mrs Dalton, herself a former primary school teacher, met with teachers in Balranald for the strike yesterday.

"Almost every school in my electorate, which stretches from the South Australian border to the Riverina, have complained to me that they can't recruit or retain teachers," Mrs Dalton said.

"It's our children who suffer as a result. They either miss classes or get taught by teachers not qualified in the subject area."

Mrs Dalton critiqued the NSW government's proposal of a 2.5 per cent pay increase, noting that with inflation recently hitting over five per cent, it actually amounted to a pay cut.

IN OTHER NEWS

Mrs Dalton said the NSW Government's proposed pay increase of 2.5 per cent would amount to a real wage reduction for teachers.

"You can't expect teachers to move to remote and rural locations if you're effectively cutting their wages," she said.

Federation representative at Leeton High School Luke Di Salvia said at the strike that Mrs Dalton had been supportive of the region's teachers but was skeptical that it alone would be enough to enact change.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: