Schools in poor and working-class areas are set to bear the brunt of planned cuts of thousands of teachers’ jobs by the Western Cape Department of Education.
The layoffs have been blamed on the R2.8-billion cut in the budget of the Department of Basic Education.
The department received R32.3-billion from the National Treasury for the 2024/25 financial year, an increase of 7.4% compared to the 2023/24 financial year. However, R2.8-billion in cuts were later approved, leaving provinces to absorb the budget shortfalls.
The DA has blamed the cuts on the Treasury, saying the government agreed to a 7.5% wage increase for teachers and other public servants for 2023/2024, but did not adjust provincial budgets accordingly.
Labour unions have warned other provincial education departments not to cut the number of teacher posts as it prepares to face off with Western Cape at the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) over its plan to shed 2 407 teacher jobs.
The ELRC also confirmed that it will be meeting the director-general of basic education Mathanzima Mweli, the heads of departments of education in all the nine provinces and the National Treasury on October 10 to discuss the budgets.
But National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa) executive director Basil Manuel is not happy that the meeting will only take place next month.
The South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) and Naptosa said the cuts are not only ill-considered but are not taking into account developments in education, including the enactment of the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Bill.
The unions lodged a dispute with the ELRC against the Western Cape Department of Education over its cuts. Spokesperson of the ELRC Bernice Davids confirmed the dispute will be heard on October 3.
Manuel said the immediate effect of the job cuts will be bigger class sizes in poor communities.
“Class sizes will differ between the haves and have-nots. Those who have, may be able to employ a teacher through the school governing body. Those who can’t, that is poor schools, township schools and schools in rural areas will see much larger class sizes.
Manuel added that with grade R now mandatory following the signing the Bela bill into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday, it means there will be a need for more teachers.
Sadtu, the largest teacher union, said it is opposed to any teacher job cuts.
Sadtu’s national spokesperson Nomusa Dube said while the union acknowledged the reduction in budgets, it called on the provincial education departments to explore other areas where they could reduce spending.
“Quality public education is the only way out for the poor to escape the cycle of poverty.”
North West Department of Education spokesperson Mphata Molokwane said though it has a shortfall of R700-million in budget, school-based posts were exempt from cost-containment measures.
KwaZulu-Natal education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said reports that it planned to retrench 11 000 teachers are untrue. “Instead, we are saying if we had enough money, we could have created 11 000 [jobs for] educators,” he said.
Matome Taueatsoala, Limpopo’s education spokesperson, said MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya is still consulting stakeholders on the 2025 post basket. “She will issue her declaration after this thorough process. The declaration will happen by September 30 as the prescripts prescribe,” he said.
The Free State and Northern Cape education departments had not responded at the time of going to print.
