Page 5859 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 7 December 2011
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Dr Bourke, my motion refers to the retention of a teacher whom everybody else within our community wants retained, except you and your government and your colleagues in government, the Greens. But the fact is that there are so many speaking about one issue and it is falling on very deaf ears in the government because you know better.
Dr Bourke also states in his press release that the government have increased funding provided to the ESL programs to around $8 million. Yet they cannot provide the salary for one additional teacher. In fact, they are cutting the teacher and moving that teacher’s position to a single school. So all of the other schools are deprived of this teacher’s capacity to assist on ESL-related issues. The Greens do not care. The government do not care. I do care. I once again commend my motion to this Assembly and to people who are interested in quality education and quality education for the ESL community as well.
Motion, as amended agreed to.
ACT public service—workplace bullying
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (5.10): I move:
That this Assembly:
(1) notes:
(a) an internal ACT Government survey has reportedly found that more than 1 600 government workers have been physically attacked, bullied or harassed by members of the public in the 20 months until September 2011, which represents a rate of 4.8 incidents per 100 workers over a 12 month period;
(b) the 2010-11 ACT Policing annual report records there were 2 916 reports of “offences against the person” in the total ACT population, which represents a rate of 0.8 incidents per 100 citizens over a 12 month period;
(c) that based on a comparison of parts (a) and (b) there is a disproportionate number of government workers being physical attacked, bullied or harassed; and
(d) that the Justice and Community Safety Guide to Framing Offences states, at pages 34-35, that:
(i) there are other industries and professions, in addition to the public service, that experience assault; and
(ii) preventing assaults or other anti-social behaviour at an industry or professional level is a far more effective strategy than focussing on the offences and the penalties attached to those offences; and
(2) calls on the ACT Government to:
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