Teacher workforce
Trung LUU (Western Metropolitan) (19:07): (1151) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Education, and it is regarding the increase in abuse and harassment towards teachers in our schools. The action I seek is for the minister to review school policies on student behaviour and expectations. WorkSafe data shows a recent rise in compensation claims for aggressive students and staff bullies. From 2022 to 2023 there was a 22 per cent increase in claims from teachers, mainly due to psychological distress, concussion, fracture from assault and even deafness. The head of personal injuries from a private law firm that manages personal injury cases states there has been an explosion of WorkSafe claims at schools. They also noted that teacher and support staff are under fire from aggressive school students and gangs, encountering harassment and bullying, causing psychological impairment. Statistics show that teachers are facing a surge in common assault by students aged between 10 and 16, with these incidents increasing by 61 per cent in the year 2023.
There needs to be a guideline to assist schools to address this rise in violence. Teachers have voiced their concern about the sharp increase in assault in school, stating they feel unsafe in their workplace due to abuse and gang activities, and that their lives have been turned upside down after injuries sustained from school incidents. In any work environment employees must be able to feel safe and not be subject to abuse and harassment. Why are our teachers being subjected to this type of violence and abuse? Reviewing the guidelines and behaviour policy for school students could help prevent further incidents. Therefore I request that the minister review the guidelines and behaviour policies for students in school to ensure the safety of teachers in their workplace.