More than 4000 public sector workers across Lutruwita/Tasmania went on strike on March 26 to demand better working conditions. 

Green Left spoke to David Genford, President of the Australian Education Union (AEU) Tasmania branch and former public school teacher, to discuss the difficulties faced by teachers and other public sector workers in the state, including unsustainable workloads, a lack of funding and staff shortages. 

Genford said the main issues driving teachers to take industrial action were intense workloads and rising violence in Tasmanian schools. He said, pending the result of the Victorian teachers strike, Tasmanian teachers could become the lowest paid in the country. 

The impact of these challenges affects not just teachers, but also student performance. Under-resourcing of schools means teachers have no choice but to pick up the slack and do hours of unpaid work to ensure the curriculum is........

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