Pay parity policy shift leaves ECE graduates facing uncertain future

Recent migrant graduates with a master's degree or graduate diploma in early childhood education in New Zealand have expressed dismay over the government's sudden change to pay equity laws.

The legislation passed in May made it harder to make a case for workers in professions dominated by women to have their pay increased in line with equivalent jobs done by men.

The education sector had been hit hard by the change.

From 1 July, newly qualified teachers could be placed on the lowest salary step regardless of prior qualifications and experience.

The government also introduced a two-year moratorium to prevent services moving from a lower-paid to higher-paid tier of the graduated parity system.

For migrant educators, the policy shift felt like a door had been abruptly slammed shut on their hopes of immigrating to New Zealand, as it became increasingly difficult to secure roles that meet the wage threshold required for residency.

According to Immigration New Zealand, registered early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers are listed on the Green List Tier 2 in-demand occupation.

Eligible teachers can apply for a Work to Residence visa after completing 24 months of employment with an accredited employer.

However, they must earn at least the median wage, currently set at $31.61 per hour for early childhood educators, to qualify.

Employment opportunities dry up

Lily Liu, a former local government employee in China, graduated in May from Auckland's ICL Graduate Business School with a graduate diploma in early childhood education.

Liu's goal was to secure a full-time position at an early childhood center that paid the median wage - but finding such a role had been difficult.

"I've applied for nearly 100 jobs since finishing my internship at the end of March," Liu said. "But I haven't heard back - not even a rejection letter."

After realizing how tight the job market was, Liu expanded her search to early childhood centers outside Auckland.

"Two small centers said they were interested [in hiring me]," she said. "But they could only offer entry-level salaries for new graduates."

Liu said the policy change had impacted her chances of securing residency.

"After the new policy was announced, I received a response from a center in Hastings saying I was not the most suitable candidate for the role," she said.

"I think it was because of the salary," she said. "I asked for the median wage, but they could only offer me the Stage 3 rate [on the parity scale], which is around $29.78 per hour."

She believed the change could make the early childhood education pathway less attractive to migrant teachers.

"If I hadn't already come here, I would have considered going to another country," she said.

Rose Zhang, who is currently studying early childhood education at ICL Graduate Business School, shared the same concerns.

With decades of experience as an English teacher at several well-known language schools in China and a master's degree in education, Zhang had hoped her background would be recognized.

However, her prior teaching experience and advanced qualifications might not be considered when ECE centers determined the starting salary step for newly certified teachers or those new to the early childhood sector from 1 July.

Set to graduate this July, Zhang was not optimistic about her prospects.

"I just finished my internship recently," she said. "I asked the manager at the early childhood center where I interned, and the manager said ECE centers are no longer willing to offer newly graduated teachers the median wage."

"Our teacher also told us in class that it's very hard to reach the median wage within the next two years, especially for students hoping to apply for residency through the Green List immigration pathway," Zhang said.

"The teacher even said we could consider going to Australia if opportunities here remain limited," she said.

Zhang said the lower salary rates could dampen teachers' enthusiasm for the work.

"Even though we often say that teachers nurture the next generation with great love, we still have to make a living," she said. "In the long run, lower salaries will definitely affect teachers' motivation - and that will inevitably impact the energy and care they're able to give children."

ECE centers express mixed views

Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand, which represents hundreds of early childhood education center owners and managers, said the country had a system that valued both experience and qualifications through an 11-step salary scale for ECE teachers.

Recognized service acknowledged work experience within the ECE sector, with each year of service counting as one step.

For those transitioning from roles outside the ECE sector, previous relevant experience allowed related experience to count as half a step, up to a maximum of two steps.

A teacher's qualifications also played a role in determining their starting point on the scale.

However, employers would have full discretion to determine the starting salary step for newly certificated teachers or those new to New Zealand's early childhood education sector from 1 July.

Recognition of previous ECE experience, relevant work history or higher qualifications would no longer be required and would be left entirely to the employer's judgment.

Kathy Wolfe, chief executive of Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand, said early childhood education centers across the country had mixed feelings about the changes.

While some employers might still choose to value teachers' prior experience and qualifications and pay accordingly, Wolfe said they could face financial constraints in doing so.

"Because of the underfunding from the government, we didn't get a lot in the budget," she said. "Centres are struggling [and] the only place they've got to go is increase fees, which will then increase costs for parents."

Wolfe said some centers might opt to reduce salaries and hire teachers at lower steps on the pay scale, a move that could worsen New Zealand's existing teacher shortage.

"Teachers will go to employers who continue to recognize and pay for their experience and qualifications," she said. "Those who choose to pay less - not because they want to, but because they have to - will struggle to employ teachers, which again will result in closing."

Philosophical shift

Fiona He, director of Auckland early childhood education centre TuiTui Educare, said the change reflected a philosophical shift from a standardized, qualification-based pay model to a more market-driven, flexible approach that her center welcomed.

While the change provided only minimal financial relief for ECE providers and was not expected to result in significant savings, it did offer greater flexibility in hiring, she said.

She said that unrelated higher qualifications would likely no longer be given the same weight as they had in the past under the new policy.

"We've had teachers with overseas master's degrees in unrelated fields who lacked understanding of New Zealand's culture, local communities and the ECE curriculum, Te Whāriki," she said. "Despite limited ECE experience and underwhelming performance, they started on Step 5 [of the parity salary scale], which is $32.59 per hour."

"Meanwhile, local graduates with a Bachelor of Teaching in ECE who are native speakers and well-versed in New Zealand's culture and curriculum often begin on Step 1, at $27.58," she added. "That disparity doesn't seem fair or reflective of their readiness to teach in our context."

While the changes offered some financial relief and greater autonomy in staffing decisions, she said they could come at a cost - potentially increasing staff turnover and leading to a decline in educational quality if formal qualifications were de-emphasized.

For teachers, the changes also risked lowering starting salaries and discouraging investment in formal education, which could ultimately lead to a loss of talent across the sector, she said.

Wolfe said New Zealand's early childhood education sector continued to face a teacher shortage, particularly in rural areas and smaller towns.

While new migrant ECE teachers might need to work for several years before becoming eligible to apply for residency, opportunities in the sector still existed, she said.

However, she said sustained government funding was essential to maintaining the quality of early childhood education in New Zealand.

"It's not just about salaries," Wolfe said. "It's also about the funding that comes into ECE, and the funding into ECE at the moment is very inadequate.

"We hope to keep attracting people into teaching [and] early childhood education."