Opting in to Pay Parity with the late advice, complicated maths and strong desire for fairness and wanting to pay teachers what they deserve made it a difficult decision for many of our members. We asked John Maher, a centre owner from Manawatū, to share some thoughts with ECC members on opting In to Pay Parity, based on his own circumstances. We hope these are useful and offer some tips you can apply to your own situation, whether you’ve already opted in or are still weighing it up. Mindset ● Keep a positive attitude by deciding on your attitude and encourage the same with your staff. Avoid those with a negative attitude ● Limit stress by recognising what you have no control over ● Be proactive not reactive, distinguish between the urgent and important ● Make lists and get started. Team work ● Learn to negotiate with an integrated approach, setting good relationships as a priority ● Prepare to be successful, but expect speed bumps along the way ● Consult with staff, review employment contracts with a view to making changes to benefit all ● Don’t forget - you are the leader of a team. The numbers ● Understand the benefit and cost of opting in ● Develop good financial skills to set cash flows, and know where you are and where you expect to get ● Manage your resources - time, people and money ● Have people in your team, a good banker, accountant and lawyer, but go prepared and don’t waste your time and money ● Identify what you need to know, ask someone who knows, and don’t get distracted ● Invest in yourself, improve communication, negotiation and financial skills Final thoughts ● With a positive attitude enjoy yourself, expect a good day, reflect on achievements, take time out. Tomorrow is another day. ● NOTHING IS EASY, BUT WHO WANTS NOTHING! In 2022 the ECC will be continuing to support the implementation of pay parity for our members. The principle of paying teachers more is widely undisputed, however, the ways that government can approach any funding or regulatory change can be done with greater or lesser care – the latter leads to unreasonably burdensome administrative process (i.e. distracts early learning centres from their core business). One member’s ways of staying positive about opting in to Pay Parity March 2022 { 12 }
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