NZEI Te Riu Roa pay disputes and what more teachers need w/ NZEI spokesperson Liam Rutherford: 16th March, 2026

The government is offering pay increases to non-union affiliated primary school teachers in advance of the collective agreement with those belonging to the primary teachers union, NZEI Te Riu Roa. 

This circumvents the precedent of settling the union agreement first, which the union sez undercuts their negotiations. The union is currently looking for increased financial and staffing supports from the government, as workloads increase with curriculum changes and an ever rising number of teachers move to Australia.

To discuss the negotiations and the issues that Primary School teachers are facing News Director Castor spoke to NZEI spokesperson Liam Rutherford.