And the Novopay issue keeps rolling on ...

That Ministry of Education staff knew  that Talent2 hadn’t factored in end of year pay issues shows how badly managed the entire process has been,  Labour’s Education Spokesperson Nanaia Mahuta says.

“Since Labour highlighted the extra workload anticipated with end of year reconciliations, the Ministry has been frantically holding workshops and providing schools with individual support.

“This extra assistance is a knee-jerk reaction to issues that would have been identified if a proper trial of the pay system had taken place.

“While Talent2 is to be penalised financially, it still fails to accept liability for recommending a 'go live' switchover to a new system that was never ready for the problems that have since emerged.

“Ultimately, however, the real fault lies with Craig Foss. He accepted the recommendation of the Board without greater scrutiny of any implementation plan or key milestones to assure himself that teachers would be paid in full and on time.

“Where is the compensation for schools for the enormous amount of time spent on rectifying Novopay errors since the switchover?

“Mr Foss and Education Minister Hekia Parata have been keen to improve their communication strategy. They could do that by ensuring Novopay is ‘fixed’  to the full confidence and satisfaction of those who rely on it,” Nanaia Mahuta said.