Bay of Plenty principal to lead NZEI

Ian Leckie, Bay of Plenty principal, has been elected president of the education sector union NZEI Te Riu Roa at its annual meeting in Rotorua.

NZEI has 50,000 members made up of school support staff, early childhood teachers, as well as teachers and principals from primary, intermediate and area schools around the country.

Ian Leckie is the principal of Tahatai Coast School in Papamoa and has been a member of NZEI for almost 40 years, serving on its national executive since 2004. Mr Leckie was also NZEI vice president in 2008/2009.

He has been elected for a two-year term and takes over from Frances Nelson, who has headed the organisation for three years.

Ian Leckie says he is honoured to have the opportunity to lead the profession through what will be challenging times ahead.

“We are already facing some big threats in education. National Standards threaten our professional integrity, funding cuts are undermining the early childhood profession and support staff continues having to fight for recognition and fair pay. There is also growing disquiet over the government’s privatisation agenda for education and its lack of commitment to closing the pay gap with Australia through the current round of teacher and principal pay negotiations.”

“We need to work hard to make the government listen to the voice of those at the coalface of teaching and learning and the communities and children they represent,” Ian Leckie says.

The principal of Kaurilands School in West Auckland, Frances Guy, has been elected as NZEI Vice President.  She has been a member of NZEI for 40 years and has been on its national executive for five years.  She has been a key player in teacher pay negotiations and is the lead negotiator on NZEI’s primary teacher collective agreement bargaining team this year.

Ian Leckie and Frances Guy will take over their new positions at the beginning of 2011.