Step 3: Prepare for staff employment

ON THIS PAGE: Background | Step 3 abc | Help with employment issues

Research shows that teacher training and qualifications have a positive impact on learning outcomes for children.

Currently, as a condition of licensing, staff acting in the position of 'Person Responsible' (as set out in the Education (Early Childhood Centres) Regulations 1998) are required to be appropriately qualified.

Under the Education (Registration of Early Childhood Services Teachers) Regulations 2004, staff acting in the position of 'Person Responsible' must also be registered. The teacher registration regulations are administered by the New Zealand Teachers' Council.

Teacher registration ensures the quality of teachers. Newly graduated teachers must complete a suitable teacher education programme and be supervised and supported through an advice and guidance programme once they begin teaching in an ECE service.

From 31 December 2007 teacher-led centre-based services will be required have 50 percent of their teaching staff holding a qualification recognised by the New Zealand Teachers Council for registration as an early childhood teacher.

The government has targets for increasing the numbers of registered early childhood teachers:

• by 2010, 80% of teaching staff in teacher-led services* will be required to be registered teachers, but services that have teachers enrolled in approved programmes to gain teacher education qualifications can meet the target by having up to 10% of these teachers enrolled in such programmes
• by 2012, 100% of teaching staff in teacher-led services* will be required to be registered teachers, but services that have teachers enrolled in approved programmes for teacher education qualifications can meet the target while having up to 30% of teachers enrolled in such programmes.

The government has put in place a number of initiatives to increase the number of qualified teachers. These include incentive grants and scholarships. You can find out more on the TeachNZ website.

Step 3 abc

To employ educators for your ECE service:

A.  Create a staffing schedule to help you decide how many teachers you will need, and for what hours you will need them. This process will also help you decide how many of these staff must be registered teachers.

• Resource: Staffing schedules

B.  Decide what other staff will need to be employed (eg, cleaner, administration staff, manager, head teacher).

C.  Develop job descriptions. It may be useful to look at job descriptions from other ECE services, where possible.

D.  Decide what salary rates and conditions you will offer. It may be useful to find out about salaries paid and conditions offered in other ECE services in your area.

E.  Every employee must have a written employment agreement. It can be either an individual agreement or a collective agreement. Decide what form the draft employment agreement between staff and the service will take. (See Help with employment issues below.)

F.  Develop employment policies. Some policies are required by the Desirable Objectives and Practices 1996 [PDF, 79 KB].

• Resource: Developing policies

G.  Advertise for staff. Refer to advertisements in the Education Gazette to help you. Consider employing at least one teacher prior to opening.

H.  Formalise the employment agreement between staff and the service prior to employment.

Help with employment issues

• The Employment Relations Service's website has a wealth of information. This ranges from templates for letters to appoint staff, to fact sheets, to employment agreement guides and help calculating parental leave for your staff. There is also an ‘Ask a question’ feature. This site is highly recommended - there is a huge range of resources to help.
• The New Zealand Teachers Council's website provides information about the process of teacher registration.
• The State Service’s Commission’s website has a section on Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO), including EEO documents produced for the New Zealand public service.
• The Human Rights Commission's website provides information about equal opportunities, including a discrimination and complaints guide.
• The New Zealand Education Institute (NZEI) is a union that negotiates collective employment agreements on behalf of many early childhood teachers. As a condition of receiving higher levels of government funding, teachers must be paid at a rate that is at least as high as the lowest step on their ‘consenting parties early childhood collective agreement’.
• The New Zealand Childcare Association - Te Tari Puna o Aotearoa provides members with information and advice on industrial issues, including management handbooks and other resources.
• The Early Childhood Council provides members with information and advice on industrial issues, including a range of resources.
• The Inland Revenue Department is a good starting point for finding out about obligations and entitlements concerning tax.