TAFE NSW teachers continue to deliver high-quality vocational education despite a loss of $239.6 million compared with a loss of $51.3 million in 2017.
The NSW TAFE annual report states: “Our people are proud, passionate and committed to achieving real outcomes for students, employers and their local communities.”
The report also identifies the funding cuts to TAFE students’ education, and it is clear these cuts are from reduced federal and state government revenue.
The Operating Budget for 2018 -19 predicts further shortfalls of government funding, with a forecast $60 million deficit of revenue to cover expenditure during this period.
TAFE teachers and support staff across NSW continue to deliver high-quality vocational education, while Government funding continues to decline.
Across NSW TAFE, teachers are working with IT systems that are broken, an increasing maintenance back log, are unable to purchase vital equipment and face an increasing compliance workload.
Teachers continue to call for action to reduce the burden of the workload falling on the teaching section, however, the government has continued to make teachers redundant and increase the number of support services and educational support staff.
Between 2015 and 2018 the net reduction in teachers was 418 while support staff numbers grew by 310.
In 2018 alone, at colleges on the South Coast of NSW, more than 20 head teachers have been cut. These cuts have included head teachers of general education literacy and numeracy, butchery, information technology, fine arts, tourism and hospitality, business studies, community services and hairdressing
These ongoing government cuts are unacceptable and Federation will continue to campaign to remove the contestable funding model and guarantee TAFE funding.
Join the campaign at stoptafecuts.com.au. Read the NSW TAFE Annual Report at tafensw.edu.au/corporate/annual-report.
— Rob Long, TAFE Organiser