Teacher posts: Western Cape education department quizzed in Parliament

The Western Cape’s plan to cut teacher posts came under scrutiny in Parliament on Tuesday. Graphic: Lisa Nelson

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) came under fire in Parliament on Tuesday over its plan to reduce teaching posts.

In August, the WCED said the number of teacher posts would be reduced by 2,407 for the 2025 school year due to a R3.8bn budget shortfall over the next three years. During Tuesday’s meeting, members of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Basic Education questioned WCED Head of Department Brent Walters about this reduction.

Walters emphasised that this is not a retrenchment of teachers, but rather a reduction; temporary teacher contracts expiring in December will not be renewed.

“We’re not retrenching teachers. We’re reducing posts. I think that’s a very big difference between these two things,” Walters said.

The WCED has notified affected schools how many posts they are losing. Those schools have until 15 November to say which posts they choose to forfeit.

Walters assured the committee that the WCED had “looked at all expenditure items” before choosing to reduce the basket of teacher posts.

“When you have large cuts to your budget, you’re going to have to go to your salaries, otherwise you’re going to overspend,” he said.

Committee chairperson Khomotjo Maimela asked the WCED representatives why the Western Cape is the only province reducing teacher posts when other provinces are also facing budget cuts.

KwaZulu-Natal is reported to be at risk of losing 11,000 teacher posts, but the provincial education department has not officially announced that. No other provinces plan to reduce teacher posts.

Maimela said she was concerned that township schools which are already overcrowded will be hit by the reduction in posts. She said the WCED was not “pro-poor.”

“I’m saying, you are literally now compromising the provision of quality of education for the poor learners in the province. And you are doing it deliberately.”

Maimela requested a written response from the WCED within seven days detailing how the post-reductions will be implemented.

Representatives from the Northern Cape Education Department told the committee they would not reduce teacher posts.

With the R358m budget shortfall the Northern Cape is experiencing, 663 teachers would have their posts at risk, but Northern Cape education MEC Abraham Vosloo said the education department was working to identify other areas of the budget to cut.

“For us to retrench these teachers would be devastating to the Northern Cape,” Vosloo said.

The medium-term budget will be tabled on Wednesday. Western Cape Minister of Education David Maynier said he hoped the Minister of Finance would announce additional support for education.