Cosatu welcomes teacher assistant jobs, calls for more
The Congress of South African Trade Unions has warned that the Teachers’ Assistants Programme is insufficient to address the country’s classroom crisis.
About 200,000 assistant teachers started work on Monday at over 20,000 schools nationwide.
This follows a study by a senior researcher at Stellenbosch University, Dr. Heleen Hofmeyr, which revealed that 70% of teachers cite excessive administrative duties as the primary cause of their stress.
The study revealed that half of the country’s educators will retire in the next decade.
Cosatu’s parliamentary coordinator, Mathew Parks, said assistant teachers have been a pillar of support for teachers and boosted classroom learning.
“This has been a welcome shift from other public employment programmes which have paid far below the NMW, provided little if any skills development or training, and often served merely as a source of cheap labour for what should be permanent work,” said Parks.
He added that it is essential that the assistant teachers are provided with the support and opportunity to become permanent teachers.
“Reversing the rising ratio of teachers to learners is key if we are to improve education outcomes and help prepare learners for their post-school education and career paths.”
“COSATU has been deeply concerned that over the past two years, under misguided and ill-considered budget cuts, this critical programme providing a lifeline to thousands of young people was cut from a peak of R35 billion to R3.5 billion in 2024.”
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