Hundreds of Victoria’s frontline teaching staff who work directly with some of the state’s most vulnerable students are facing redundancy.
The specialised teachers are in the firing line after the Andrews Government this week took the axe to the state’s Department of Education.
The vital Visiting Teaching Service supports thousands of students in Victoria who have acute needs, including hearing, visual, physical and mental impairments and some even with life-threatening illnesses, including cancer.
These staff cuts come just days after the Victorian Government said none of the 325 staff in the Department of Education that were facing redundancies were frontline.
Shadow Minister for Education, Matt Bach, said Victoria’s most vulnerable students should not pay the price for Labor’s economic incompetence.
“These cuts to frontline staff are unconscionable and will be felt widely,” Mr Bach said.
Shadow Minister for Disability, Tim Bull, called on the Minister for Education to immediately rule out any cuts to the Visiting Teacher Service and protect these vital frontline workers.
“I was horrified to learn that the Government would take the axe to 85 jobs who support children living with physical and mental disabilities. The Minister must immediately and categorically rule out any cuts to the VTS,” Mr Bull said.