QTAD Q&A
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 123 No 2, 9 March 2018, p29
Are you eligible to become an experienced senior teacher this year?
This year will capture those senior teachers who become eligible from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018.
- Four-year trained teachers: three years’ full-time equivalent service as a senior teacher.
- Three-year trained teachers: six years’ full-time equivalent service as a senior teacher.
- Applications advertised: 23 February 2018
- Applications close: 29 March 2018
- Notification of outcome via email: term three
- Payments to successful applicants: term three 2018.
The EST classification remains accessible through a merit selection process, and applications are accessible via the Smart Jobs website (www.smartjobs.qld.gov.au) when open.
How much time can I be asked to undertake playground duties for each week?
There is no agreed maximum amount of time for playground duty (PGD) set out in the Teaching in State Education Award – State 2016 or State School Teachers’ Certified Agreement 2016. However, award and certified agreement prescriptions in relation to meal breaks mean that teachers cannot be unreasonably deployed to undertake this duty.
A teacher’s daily entitlements to meal breaks include a 10-minute rest pause and an uninterrupted meal break of 45 minutes per day. This meal break can be reduced to 30 minutes subject to LCC discussions, however at the end of each week a full-time teacher should have received 225 minutes of meal breaks and 50 minutes of rest pause.
Below is an example of a school that has used the facilitative provisions of the certified agreement (through the LCC process) to have its 45-minute uninterrupted meal break reduced to no less than a 30-minute uninterrupted meal break each day.
For the purpose of this example, the school’s current break times are 11.00am – 11.30am and 1.00pm – 1.40pm, which equates to 70 minutes per day.
School total break times | 5 days x 70 mins = | 350 mins per week |
Teachers award entitlements for meal breaks | 5 days x 45 mins = | 225 mins per week |
Teachers award entitlements for rest pause | 5 days x 10 mins = | 50 mins per week |
Time remaining for PGD | 75 mins per week |
The maximum playground duty a teacher in this example can be asked to undertake is 75 minutes per week. Teachers at this school must receive a minimum of a 10-minute rest pause and 30-minute uninterrupted break daily. The rest pause should be in a separate break from that designated as the meal break.
Section 16.3 of the award states:
16.3 Bus and playground supervision
(a) Subject to clauses 16.3(b) and (c), teachers will be relieved of bus supervision duties and supervision of students in the playground as far as possible and where appropriate.
(b) Teachers are still required to undertake some part of those duties. The appropriate mix of teachers and teacher-aides will be determined by the principal of the school, having regard to local circumstances in accordance with the applicable local consultative arrangements.
(c) Teachers shall not be required to undertake bus supervision duties for more than 30 minutes after the completion of the daily program of instruction.
I am a specialist teacher – do I have to do playground duty?
Playground duty and bus duty is not to be allocated where the specialist teacher services more than two schools. This is clearly outlined in section 15.3 of the Teaching in State Education Award – State 2016.
For further information please contact QTAD on 1300 11 7823 or email qtad@qtu.asn.au