It is not a representative poll of workers. It is not even a poll or survey of union members. It is:
The survey, the sixth ‘Mood of the Workforce’ conducted annually by the CTU, gathered 2000 responses. Responses were from people who responded to an email from the CTU to a random selection of 50,000 people from the CTU’s ‘Together’ email list.
The email list is a database of people the CTU had contacted with over the last seven years via petitions, parliamentary submission calls, community events, and fundraising for community causes.
So this is a list of supporters and activists associated with the CTU. It is no ways represents the “worker”.
National Māori Development minister Tama Potaka has defended Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s absence from the national hui-ā-iwi at Ngāruawāhia, where many speakers have attacked the new coalition government’s policies towards Māori.
He also described claims by speakers that the Government was underpinned by white supremacy as ‘premature’ and said he did not believe that.
Seven out of 20 Ministers are Māori, or 35%, and people think this is white supremacy – having three times as many Māori as their share of the adult population.
Wouldn’t it be nice if one could actually discuss different views on the Treaty, without ridiculous insults.
Without comment from me (many of these come up each week). Extra information – this was posted on Seek 19 Jan 2024.
Senior Education Adviser
Ministry of Education
Auckland
Teaching – Secondary (Education & Training)
Full time
Posted 18h ago
Help shape the future of Education
He mea tārai e mātou te mātauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai ōna huanga
We work to shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent outcomes
At Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education, we work to provide services and support nationally, regionally and locally to the education sector, and in some cases, directly to ākonga and whānau.
We shape the policies, settings and performance of the education system for early learning, schooling and tertiary.
We are making significant changes to how we deliver our purpose.
So that we:
Take practical action to give effect to te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Give priority to regional and local voice.
Deliver greater responsiveness, accessibility and integrated services and support.
Improve feedback loops and information flows.
Our organisation is made up of talented and committed people around Aotearoa, from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures. While we work in different groups and on different things, we all strive every day to make the biggest difference we can for our ākonga in our education system.
Mō tēnei tūranga | About this role
Key priorities of this role will include:
Working with individual kura/schools and Communities of Learning | Kāhui Ako to significantly improve student attendance, engagement, and achievement.
Using detailed analysis of schools/kura performance and student achievement to influence change and maximise education outcomes for students.
Brokering support for schools/kura where potential is identified – this may include building capability and strengthening governance and management, regulatory compliance, curriculum, monitoring and assessment, student and whānau, family and community engagement.
Salary range: $84,425 – $102,271 per annum + 3% kiwi saver. The successful candidate will be appointed at a salary which reflects individual skills and experience.
Flexible working arrangements where everyone feels valued & supported.
The ability to purchase extra days leave.
A range of employee network groups.
An inclusive environment that encourages your personal cultural competency journey.
Development and learning, including mentorship programmes and internal secondments.
Wellness initiatives to support your overall health and wellbeing.
Mōhou ake | About you
If you can evidence your experience across the following areas, we would like to hear from you:
An ability to develop strong working relationships.
Some knowledge and understanding of Te Reo Māori ona tikanga.
Experience working with Māori and Pacific communities and/or services.
Have experience in assessing information to make objective judgments against criteria and recommend courses of action.
Can analyse complex issues and provide clear and succinct written and oral reports.
Have experience in dealing with complex relationships, including influencing and negotiation skills.
The ability to understand and apply the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
In-depth professional knowledge and recent experience within a school/kura setting.
A current full driver’s licence is essential.
Mātau rōpū ake | About our group and team
Te Mahau | Te Tai Raro is a frontline group. Our frontline groups will collectively provide leadership and integrated services to the sector and others. This includes services, such as learning support and education advice and regulation functions for schools and early learning services.
Kua rite koe mō tēnei mahi? | Are you ready to make a difference?
If this opportunity interests you, please submit your cover letter and resume by using the ‘apply’ button. In your cover letter we’d like to know about you, your values, or anything else you’d like to share. We’re keen to understand your motivations, strengths, transferable skills, and the diverse perspectives you will bring to the role.
Applications close Midnight – Friday 9 February 2024
We want our people to feel valued for their unique qualities and have a sense of belonging. If you require assistance or adjustments to fully participate in the recruitment process, please let us know.
The context is the writer for years has pestered the Council, accusing them of “extremely unlawful actions” and being a “fictitious entity” as he subscribes to the sovereign citizen movement.
Our decline in smoking in the past four years is extraordinary – equivalent to what took two decades to achieve. New Zealand has recently had some of the most dramatic decreases in smoking in the world, including for Māori and highly deprived groups.
Last month, the New Zealand Health Survey showed the daily smoking rate is now down to 6.8 per cent in adults, half the rate in 2018; almost a quarter of a million fewer Kiwis are now smoking daily, and it puts us in a tiny club of countries that have smoking rates under 7 per cent.
What we have in common with these successful countries is people switching from smoked tobacco to less harmful alternatives. The dramatic declines are accompanied by large uptakes in vaping, leading to a tsunami of 75,000 quitters in Aotearoa in the past year. To reach the smoking goal of 5 per cent or less (that is, 95 per cent or more of all adults being “smokefree”), around 100,000 smokers need to quit over the next two years.
Vaping is not harmless, but it is far far less harmful than smoking. The decline in tobacco use has been massive, and welcome.
The unprecedented progress shown in the New Zealand Health Survey should have been a cause to celebrate. Still, concern at the coalition Government’s intention to repeal the 2022 Smokefree legislation overshadowed this remarkable achievement.
Many have claimed this repeal would jeopardise the Smokefree 2025 goal. However, this is simply not the case. Predictive modelling, which contributed to the scientific underpinning of the legislation, indicated that it would take until 2040 to get smoking rates down to 8 per cent without the law. The reality is that we have already exceeded this expectation. And a closer look reveals that the three headline measures in the act were unlikely to have any impact before 2025.
For a start, the highly touted “smokefree generation” has already been achieved for people under 25. Only 3 per cent of people aged 15-24 smoked daily in 2022/23, a quarter of the rate only four years ago. Besides, the age restrictions in the act wouldn’t have taken effect until 2027.
This is important to note. The measures the Government decided not to implement, would have no real impact by 2025, so won’t affect making that target.
While ever the demand for cigarettes remains high, abruptly limiting tobacco outlets on July 1, 2024 from 6000 to 600 would not significantly impact smoking rates but could penalise the almost 300,000 people still dependent on cigarettes. In addition, a sudden and dramatic 90 per cent reduction in retail outlets from around 6000 to 600 is likely to cause unnecessary chaos, especially in Auckland, with only 30 outlets allocated for about 90,000 people who smoke; each outlet would have to serve on average, approximately two customers every minute.
This is the view of ASH, our leading anti-smoking group. There is a good reason the Government repealed the changes made last year – because they were bacd policy.
The Iowa result leaves little doubt Trump will be the Republican nominee. He got over 50% of the vote, and the next candidate was at 21%.
DeSantis came 2nd, but isn’t really contesting New Hampshire, and unlikely to be competitive in South Carolina.
Haley was a close third. She may even win New Hampshire, but past that what states could she win? If DeSantis pulls out, more of his support will go to Trump than her.
Even if Trump is convicted in one of his many trials of felony crimes, he will probably have the nomination wrapped up by then.
What a terrible choice for 2024 – Trump or Biden. The US deserves better.
I was involved in the Villa Education Trust in providing two Partnership Schools under the last National/ACT regime. It was a great policy but very poorly implemented (as Seymour would acknowledge) and both Parata and the Ministry were HUGE handbrakes. The Ministry should be completely sidelined on the new policy.
Never-the-less Cognition Education reported that:
“In summary we find and conclude that in both schools [SAMS & MSWA], the management and staff are actively involved in continuous development, and the delivery, of a unique programme of teaching and learningwhich is based on a comprehensive ‘local’ curriculum that is aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum, and which provides for the personalised needs of priority learners ‘many of whom have been failed by the current education system.
Based on our findings and conclusions, and our experiences in a wide range of New Zealand State schools, Cognition has assessed the local curriculum, teaching and learning within both SAMS and MSWA as being unique and of a ‘special character’ when compared to that provided at ordinary state schools.”
Even the Ministry (most certainly not a friend of Partnership Schools) has had to acknowledge:
“In 2018 the ministry worked with Villa Education Trust and found accelerated learning was happening.”
The PPTA claims that the NZ education system provides choice for NZ children and families. They are right with regards to school choice in Epsom and affluent areas of Wellington and Christchurch. The choice in other areas is that a few succeed and everyone else fails but teachers get paid as if they are all equal. They also deny bulk funding and providing incentives in low socio-economic areas.
Two years ago I resigned for the Villa Education Trust. I am very much open to options with new individuals and groups to establish schools as remarkable as South Auckland Middle School and Middle School West Auckland were in their Partnership School years. NZ children/families need great people to step-up!
A dad parked at a popular Dunedin lookout was attacked by a man from another car who objected to his baby being out late at night.
Senior Sergeant Anthony Bond, of Dunedin, said the father was parked at Unity Park late yesterday evening when the assault happened.
“The argument started because the occupant had a baby in the back seat they were trying to settle, as they had been driving around and parked up there.”
A 30-year-old man, a passenger in another parked car, got out and approached the family’s vehicle.
When the father got out of his car, the man started arguing with him.
He told the father he “shouldn’t have a baby out this late”, and punched him in the back of the head, Bond said.
This is pretty horrific. I’ve been in the situation of the Dad many times when the kids were really young. After 90 minutes of trying to settle them at home by walking, rocking etc you finally strap them into the car seat and drive. Sometimes it works in 20 minutes, sometimes it takes well over an hour. And even once they’re asleep you don’t head straight home because you want to make sure they’re in a deep sleep when you try to transfer them back to the cot.
So it is wrong to judge parents out late at night with kids in the car, let alone decide you can assault them for your misconceptions. I hope serious charges are pressed.
The press conference by the Green co-leaders over the resignation of Golriz Ghahraman for alleged shoplifting was incredibly tone deaf. You would have thought that Ghahraman was the victim, rather than the actual victims.
Trying to excuse what happened as being due to stress from the job is insulting to all the people who are also very stressed but don’t shoplift.
Yes it seems bizarre that someone who is in the top 1% of income earners would shoplift, but that doesn’t make it less worse. And the value of the items allegedly stolen were high enough to be difficult for even someone on an MPs salary to afford.
It is not as if this was a one off moment of madness. There were (at least) three incidents. How many more were there? A truly contrite person would actually apologise to the victims.
The resignation was stated to be the best thing for Ghahraman’s mental health. That isn’t why she should resign. The resignation should have been about the fact you can’t be an MP and commit serious crimes. Both her statement and the co-leaders statements made it all about her, rather than the victims and the importance of MPs not to repeatedly break the law.
Golriz, like all of us, is imperfect. Few of us never stuff up, do something we regret etc. You shouldn’t judge people by the worst thing they have done, but by their overall contribution. But when you do stuff up, you should be contrite.
Police are investigating another shoplifting allegation seemingly involving Green MP Golriz Ghahraman, this time in relation to a Wellington store.
Wellington-based store, Cre8iveworx, emailed other businesses in the city on Monday saying they believed Ghahraman was in the premises in October last year.
The store sells high-end dresses, gifts, jewellery and homeware.
A police spokesperson confirmed they received a shoplifting report from Cre8iveworx, about an incident on October 26. The spokesperson on Monday told Stuff“enquiries into the matter are ongoing”.
It isn’t quite clear from the story, but it looks like they didn’t immediately realise Ghahraman was the alleged shoplifter, but presumably recent publicity had them figure it out.
It has now been three weeks since the Greens were notified, and still there has been no denial. Incredible. A very interesting question to ask will be whether any Green MPs knew about these allegations before the co-leaders claim they found out on 27 December.
The government has officially cancelled Auckland’s light rail project, fulfilling a campaign 100-day plan promise to use the funds for different transportation projects.
Transport Minister Simeon Brown said the project would have cost taxpayers $15 billion, with advice showing the cost could increase to $29.2 billion.
“The previous government committed to building light rail to Mt Roskill within four years of being elected,” Brown said.
“After six years and over $228 million spent on the project, not a single metre of track has been delivered and congestion has only worsened in the city.
Arguably this was Labour’s biggest failure, even larger than Kiwibuild. It was Jacinda’s first promise – light rail would be up and going by the end of 2021. Instead they spent $228 million on consultants, which is a staggering amount. If you assume $2,000 a day consultancy rate then they paid for 114,000 days of consultants.
There was a real cost to all this. The western busway was done for $100 million. All that money wasted for nothing.
A record number of countries eliminated diseases this year
US reported cancer death rates have fallen by a third in the last three decades
Two malaria vaccines are about to be released
Exclusive breastfeeding has increased from 38% to 48% globally in the last decade
Age-standardised drowning mortality rates falling by 57.4% in the last three decades.
World’s solar capacity has doubled in the last 18 months, and that solar is now the fastest-growing energy technology in history
Just two years ago, one in 25 cars sold globally was an electric vehicle. This year it will be one in five, and by 2025, one in two
Discovery of huge new deposits of lithium in the United States and phosphate in Norway, a plunge in lithium and cobalt prices as new mines and processing plants solved shortages sooner than expected
India, which has lifted hundreds of millions of people out poverty in the last two decades, and Indonesia, which has reduced its share of people living on less than $3.20 a day from 61% in 2002 to 16% in 2022
Over the past three decades, global suicide rates have fallen by more than a third
UNICEF reported that there are 50 million more girls in school today than there were in 2015
Between 2000 and 2022, 2.1 billion people have gained access to safe drinking water
India, home to the highest number of teenage brides, reported that the proportion of all girls married before the age of 18 has fallen from 46% to 23% in the last 15 years
The UN High Seas Treaty is the first international agreement on ocean protection since 1982, providing for the common governance of half the Earth’s surface, and paving the way for conservation on the high seas, with the aim of protecting at least 30% of the planet by 2030. Only about 1% of the high seas is currently protected.
Brazil’s deforestation rate fell by over 50%, the largest single year decline since records began
Japanese scientists discovered a plastic-eating bacteria that could help solve global waste
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins KC today expressed New Zealand support for strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen threatening commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
“Today’s strikes support international security and trade, on which New Zealanders rely,” Foreign Minister Winston Peters said.
“Nearly 15 per cent of global trade flows through the Red Sea and Suez Canal. Supply chain disruptions mean higher costs for New Zealand consumers and delays getting goods to and from markets in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
“We are a trading nation that relies on international maritime law and the free flow of goods, and Houthi actions strike at the heart of New Zealand’s national security.”
The Ministers said today’s military strikes followed clear warnings.
“The Houthi attacks are illegal, unacceptable and profoundly destabilising. We and our partners have made repeated calls for them to stop,” Mr Peters said.
“These warnings have not been heeded. The Houthis have only stepped up their attacks, as we saw on 10 January with the launch of further drones and missiles at commercial shipping vessels. Today’s response is the inevitable consequence of the Houthis’ disregard for international law, peace and stability.”
Ms Collins said the United Nations Security Council had also been clear on this issue, demanding that the Houthis immediately cease their attacks.
“This is a good example of the international community uniting to address a serious threat to international security,” she said.
So nice to have a Government that is unequivocal on issues like this.
We are now getting a clearer timeline of the shoplifting allegations against Green MP Golriz Ghahraman, and the involvement of the Green Party in (not) investigating serious criminal allegations.
The allegations, if they lead to charges, carry a maximum penalty of seven years jail. A conviction would result in automatic expulsion from Parliament. A conviction could also get Ghahraman disbarred as a lawyer. So these are not trivial issues.
The timeline, known so far is:
Sat 23 Dec. Ghahraman is allegedly observed (and possibly on video) putting $15,000 of items into her bag. She was stopped by staff but refused to open her bag (even though they had the legal right to search it, as the suspected stolen items were over $1,000) and left. Hours later the clothing was reported to have been anonymously returned to the store. Scotties allegedly e-mailed video of the incident to both the Greens and Police.
Wed 27 Dec. Green co-leaders claim they were only notified that day of the shoplifting allegation. They claim the situation was “not clear” and that as Ghahraman was on an overseas holiday, they decided to do nothing until she returned. It seems incredible that you would be notified that your Justice Spokesperson has been accused of shoplifting, and decide that her holiday takes precedence over determining what happened.
Fri 5 Jan. Green co-leaders notified that there is video evidence of a second shoplifting incident in late November or early December. They imply at this point they asked Ghahraman to stand down, but didn’t make this public as the alleged victim didn’t want publicity. They seem to think allegations of criminal behaviour against their justice spokesperson is a private matter. Also unanswered is why they didn’t announce the stand down, without naming the alleged victim?
Wed 10 Jan. Story hits media after ZB Plus publishes story. Only at this stage do Greens say anything publicly.
Thu 11 Jan. Police (finally) start to investigate complaint.
Fri 12 Jan. Co-leaders confirm they have known for at least 16 days of the alleged shoplifting by their Justice Spokesperson. Noticeably there has still been no denial of the alleged facts by Ghahraman or the Greens.
