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SAS Staff Overtime results & Performance Development

  15 September 2016

SAS Staff Overtime results & Performance Development – September 2016 (PDF version)

ɫ������Overtime Campaign Getting Results for Members

The ɫ������is pleased to report increased compliance with schools paying overtime to ɫ������members who were previously working unpaid hours. We were recently made aware that the Department has seen an increase in claims for overtime from SASS, so much so that it was falling behind a little in the processing of these claims. This is an important outcome arising directly from the PSA’s work on work overload in schools, particularly the LMBR roll-out schools.

The ɫ������congratulates members who took a stand by claiming the overtime/time in lieu. We have to ensure that all SAS staff affected by work overload make these claims as this is the only way to expose the real cost of running LMBR.

Snapshot of an effective ɫ������campaign 2015-2016:

• Workload survey which demonstrated that 80 percent of SAS staff working with LMBR did three hours or more of unpaid work;

• outreach to members through outbound calling to explore the extent of the issue;

• written and signed statements by members willing to speak out on the issue;

• obtaining and analysing Department data on:

• overtime payments to SAS staff in LMBR schools;

• time in lieu given to SAS staff in LMBR schools;

• additional SAS Staff hired in LMBR schools,

• utilising the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 to access the KPMG report on its Effectiveness Review of the Schools LMBR roll out.

• Written and signed statements with supporting documentation  from a school  visited by the Department’s LMBR officers who were allegedly unreceptive to the views of the staff working directly with LMBR.

• An LMBR readiness survey in the 229 LMBR focus schools which demonstrated that the vast majority did not agree that LMBR was ready to roll out to any further schools.

• Publishing members’ feedback on LMBR anonymously on our ɫ������website to ensure members knew that you weren’t alone in your experiences.

• ‘LMBR Users Survival Guide’ – ‘Know Your Job, Do Your Job, Get Paid for What You Do’ campaign.

This campaign and lobbying work all came together and resulted in:

• Public attention through media coverage of the issue. Some of which you can review HERE.

• Formal advice from the Department to Principals on payment of overtime/time off in lieu. circulated through Schoolbiz ‘critical readings’ in the Week 1 Term 2

• A substantial increase in claims for overtime from SAS Staff.

• The Department incorporating our workload concerns into their “lessons learnt” for the ongoing LMBR rollouts.

• The lessons learnt included advice to Principals about resourcing LMBR in their schools budget by including sufficient payment for overtime for SAS Staff and/or funds for additional trained staff to support the roll out of LMBR.

• increased compliance with schools paying overtime to ɫ������members who were previously working unpaid hours.

What next?

The ɫ������will soon survey members to obtain data on the extent of compliance with overtime payments and time in lieu we will need members to complete this survey when it is released in the coming fortnight.

In the meantime make sure you keep up the campaign by claiming overtime/time off in lieu and encouraging your colleagues to do the same.

You can click HERE for LMBR “User Survival Guide” campaign posters to put up in your workplace.

Performance Development

Ban to stay in place

The ɫ������recently surveyed members about the proposition of lifting the ban on performance development in response to a request from the Department. The survey closed Friday 9 September 2016. The result of the survey was that the majority respondents voted NO to lifting the ban.

As a result, members are directed to continue to observe the ban on all performance development activities until further notice.

The ɫ������met with the Department on this issue on Monday 12 September 2016 to advise them of this development.

Ban to stay until Department commits to addressing members’ concerns

At this same meeting the ɫ������sought a commitment from the Department that performance development would not be rolled out until agreement is reached on how to address the concerns that ɫ������members have about performance development.

As things currently stand, the issues raised by members have not been addressed by the Department.

The Department declined to provide this assurance verbally and sought this request to be confirmed in writing. The ɫ������immediately wrote to the Department on the 12 September 2016 after our meeting to confirm our position. You can read this letter HERE.

For more information, read our previous two bulletins HERE and HERE.

If such an assurance is provided by the Department the ɫ������will recommend to members that the ban is lifted.

The ɫ������is awaiting a response from the Department to our correspondence. We will continue to update you on the latest developments on this issue.