SADTU in KwaZulu-Natal calls for urgent action as it says education department has 'collapsed'
The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) in KwaZulu-Natal has declared the provincial Department of Education as having “collapsed,” citing a growing list of financial and administrative failures that the union claims have left schools without basic resources and staff unpaid.
In a strongly worded statement, the union said it had exhausted all avenues to raise concerns, including bilateral meetings, pickets, and direct appeals to the department, but “the situation continues to deteriorate.”
The Mercury has previously reported that the department is on the brink of financial collapse.
“The Department has failed in several critical areas,” SADTU said, listing among others: non-payment of school allocations, unpaid service providers, non-payment of Grade R practitioners, a moratorium on filling critical posts such as school clerks and teacher assistants, and the failure to pay acting allowances.
SADTU has instructed its members to withdraw from departmental meetings, workshops, and all non-teaching activities, focusing strictly on seven hours of classroom teaching. “Members will not attend meetings or workshops organised by the department,” the statement read.
“Only when the department pays all the money owed to schools will they participate in departmental programmes.”
Responding to the statement, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education media liaison officer Mlu Mtshali said, “The department has noted the statement. We note that the union appreciates the root cause of the challenges they articulate in the statement.”
Mtshali added that “the department is adjusting its operations to respond to compounded cuts to its budget, which is a factor beyond the control of the department.”
He confirmed that engagements with SADTU have been ongoing. “The department intends to meet with SADTU specifically on the media statement of the union. The department is functional and we remain committed to, within the available resources of the department, continuing to support teachers and learners to promote a conducive learning environment.”
Mtshali said the department would also “continue to engage provincial and national treasury to seek solutions to funding gaps.”
Meanwhile, the Public Servants Association (PSA) warned that “what we are witnessing is not just a financial issue; it is a collapse of the core systems that sustain public education.” Mlungisi Ndlovu, PSA Provincial Manager, said, “Service providers have withdrawn critical services such as sanitation and electricity.
“Principals are running schools with zero budgets, while School Governing Body-appointed staff, including teachers and support personnel, remain unpaid.”
He added, “The problems confronting the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education are structural and financial, and they go far beyond what a provincial MEC can address without significant external support.”
The PSA has called for an urgent provincial education summit, led by the Premier, to bring together all spheres of government and key stakeholders. “This summit must provide emergency budget interventions, accountability measures, a rethink of the school funding model, and concrete steps to protect the academic year and restore stability.”
“The suffering in our schools is real,” said Ndlovu. “Learners are being deprived of food, textbooks, and basic dignity. If nothing changes, we risk condemning a generation to systemic educational failure.”