Premier Minns, Ms Car and Mr Dizdar with staff and students at Merrylands High School.
Sixteen thousand temporary teachers and school-based support staff have been offered conversion to permanent contracts in the State’s education system by the beginning of Term 4 in 2023.
According to Premier Chris Minns and Deputy Premier Prue Car who met with staff and students at Merrylands High School, 5,463 staff at 982 schools had accepted offers under a phased rollout grouped by geographical region.
“Making teachers and support staff permanent is telling them directly: we want you, we need you and we want to see you thrive in your career in NSW public schools,” Mr Minns said.
For teacher Anthony Kewin, the opportunity to become a permanent member of the Merrylands High team has been life-altering.
“I love coming in and working hard every day for the kids,” Mr Kewin said, “knowing that I’m valued and a part of the school community is an amazing feeling.”
“I’ve also been able to purchase my first property and make longer term plans for my life,” he said.
High, School Captain at Merrylands, Abraham Hawat said the benefits were also being felt by the students.
“Seeing our teachers happy makes us happy,” student Hawat said.
“Hearing our teachers feel valued and part of the community really warms all our hearts,” he said.
Deputy Premier Prue Car said permanency allowed teachers and school support staff to plan for the future.
“To see more than 5,500 teachers and support staff being made permanent, with so many more to come, is incredibly encouraging,” Ms Car said.
She said staff eligible for an offer had been working in their current school for at least three years and staff who accepted offers by the end of May were anticipated to have their first day of permanent duty on Day 1, Term 3.
All other permanent appointments under this program are anticipated to be in place by the start of the 2024 school year,” the Ministers said.
