Communications Bulletin – Members Update Dec 2020
Hi Everyone
Your Executive Committee held a face to face meeting on 2nd November 2020, at Saint Patrick’s College, Wellington. All the committee members were able to attend.
It was decided that our next AGM will have the option for members to attend remotely via zoom or in person if alert levels allow. Details will be available after the date of the AGM has been announced.
David Cook can take on the role as a travelling ambassador. Schools can pay expenses for David to visit and advise on safety issues. STANZ could cover this cost for a cluster visit, or individual schools could apply for short course PD for funding. We recommend David Cook but he is not an official STANZ representative.
Next year we will be calling for nominations for members to join the Executive committee. You are welcome to put your hand up if you are a school science technician and have been in the role for at least 1 year.
Terry Price
STANZ Communications Officer
Communications Bulletin – Members Update Aug 2020
To the STANZ membership:
New Funding Available:
STANZ (Inc.) is pleased to announce it is now able to fund individual members to attend short courses (1 or 2 days in length), up to a maximum of $500 or to 50% of the course cost, whichever is greater. The criteria and application process for this new funding is explained in the link below:
Professional Development Funding Criteria and Application Form – New Short Course Scholarship
Newsletter Deadline:
The deadline for contributions to our special 100th edition of Tech Tonic is Sunday 13 September.
Terry Price
Communications Officer | Science Technicians’ Association of NZ
Communications Bulletin – Members Update May 2020
Hi Everyone
Our Term 2 Communications Report from the Executive Committee includes discussion from our Executive meeting held via zoom on 6th April and the STANZ Annual General Meeting(AGM) held this year on April 28 also via zoom.
New Safety and Science document.
Progress is slow but still being made on this important safety document. Final sign off from the Ministry of Education is still some time away.
NZEI pay claim
The NZEI pay claim on behalf of School Science Technicians is going to be a long process. Consultation has started. Chris Walker, a lead negotiator joined our Executive meeting and explained the negotiation process for a pay claim.
Executive committee elections in 2021
Members are encouraged to think about standing for Executive committee elections in 2021.
Tutorials
We have been given tutorials from Niacan, a company run by Jeanette Price, a former School Science Technician. The tutorials are now on our website: Niacan diy tutorials
Members are reminded we have a STANZ Complaints and Grievance Form located on the STANZ website.
We currently have 390 registered members using our discussion forum. Please be mindful that paid content or copyright material is not to be posted on the forum.
Terry Price
Communications Officer | Science Technicians’ Association of NZ
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President’s Report April 2020
President’s Report April 2020
It has been a bit of an unusual start to the year with the covid-19 outbreak constantly in the news and with the announcement this week of the World Health Organisation’s declaration of a pandemic. On the Technician front, it seems that we have all had quite a busy start to our year with Senior practical internal assessments starting early.
The start of this year has been quite challenging for me personally with health, family and work issues taking up a lot of my attention and leaving me with little time to work on STANZ projects. I am hopeful that these challenges will be easing off as the year progresses and I can get back on track. I would like to thank Monique and Jane in particular for their support during this time.
As announced on scitech talk a couple of weeks ago, progress has been made on the new Safety and Science document which will replace our now obsolete Code of Practice and Guidance to the Code of Practice. The document has been sent back to the writing team for editing and will then need to go back to the legal teams at WorkSafe and the Ministry of Education for approval before being submitted for final sign off. Progress is slow but at least there is some progression happening.
I am hopeful that our meeting with the NZEI lead on the Pay Equity Claims for Support Staff will give us some insight into the procedures involved in our future claim. The Teacher Aids’ claim outcome should be made public very soon and we can only hope that this will have a positive effect on our own claim. I would like to include a push for improvements in our working conditions from a Health and Safety standpoint in our claim as I am aware of many of our members who still work in unsafe conditions every day with no dangerous goods cabinets, no active ventilation etc.
I have been in discussion with WorkSafe regarding some changes they have made to the definition of a laboratory, which I will discuss in further detail at our meeting.
As next year is conference year and thus election year, I would like everyone on the Executive Committee to start actively encouraging fellow Science Technicians to stand for election next year. It was encouraging that we had enough applicants to run an actual election last year and I would like to see a repeat of that next year, with particular emphasis on South Island Technicians and Technicians from Northland if we can manage it. I would really like to see these areas better represented.
Planning seems to be well underway for ConSTANZ21 with the notification from the Conference Committee’s Secretary of the date and venue for next year’s conference.
I know that we had a confusing start to this year with the change in our AGM cycle and Loomio issues but hopefully this will not be repeated. Thank you to everyone on the Committee for their patience as we worked through this.
Arwen Heyworth
President’s Report ConSTANZ19
PRESIDENT’S REPORT – AGM – Thursday October 10, 2019
CONSTANZ 19
It has been a privilege for me to be your President during this milestone 10th ConSTANZ Conference and a great source of pride to be part of a Committee that has come so far since its inception and humble beginnings in 2001. STANZ (Inc) has grown as a professional organisation that informs and educates its members. I am sure the late Peter Spratt of the Royal Society would be proud of the Association we have become.
I thank the hardworking and dedicated conference team, under the guidance of Jane Lieshout and Lesley Stephens, who have brought ConSTANZ19 to life for us in Wellington.
As was in the beginning, we still have challenges, from pay disparity discussions, to Code of Practice frustrations and working conditions. However, as the years have passed, the voice of STANZ (Inc) has grown considerably stronger enabling us to have active participation in discussions that are relevant to us.
It was very pleasing to have so many people stand for The Executive this year allowing us to hold an election.
It must be said that the Executive was disappointed in the low number of people who voted. The voting process that we used was simple and quick, yet still less than half of the registered members had their say.
Nevertheless, the standard of nominees was exceptional, and we have a new Committee that is strong and focussed. It is especially pleasing to see continuing South Island representation.
As happy as I am to gain new and enthusiastic members to the Executive, it does sadden me to lose the talents of both Ann Brimmer and Sheryl Fitzsimons this year. Both ladies have made invaluable contributions to STANZ (Inc) and their presence will be missed. Ann has been editor extraordinaire of Tech Tonic and in her time as editor has built the newsletter up to an exceptionally high standard. Sheryl farewells us as Past President, having served a term as President from 2015-2017. Prior to her Presidency she served as Treasurer and has been a committee member since 2013. Sheryl has made valuable contributions to the running of STANZ(Inc) and has streamlined many processes. Sheryl has had her finger on the pulse on many governing issues. I thank you both for you years of voluntary service and wish you well in your ‘retirements’.
STANZ has been delighted to have been able to increase the number of scholarships available to its members and we had a record number of applicants this year, especially for the fully funded ‘STANZ Get Me To ConSTANZ’ scholarship. Congratulations to all the worthy recipients.
The process of re-writing the Constitution has been finalised and will be ratified by the members at this AGM. It has been a demanding task but the results will see us better in line with pending government regulations.
Pay equity campaigns discussions are continuing and STANZ will keep you informed of any progress for Science Technicians as it comes to hand.
Regrettably, there is still no final word on the re-write of ‘Safety in Science’. Promised deadlines have come and gone with regrettably no final date set. Our Advocacy and Health and Safety Officer, Arwen Heyworth, has been heavily involved with the re-write and has tried to ensure that our technician needs have been met in the new document. The writers have handed in their sections and the document has been passed on to proof readers and editors. Once it has been proofed, it will be passed onto the Ministry of Education and WorkSafe for approval. All this is likely to take some time and a 2019 release date now looks very unlikely.
We hope the new document will stand up to the task.
Issues with chemical tracking and the lack of reticulated gas in new buildings have also arisen sharply this year. Our Health and Safety Officers, Jane and Arwen, have dealt with many of these and we look to provide clarity to both those issues in the next term.
Finally, as my tenure as President winds up, I would like to thank the Executive for their support, wisdom and encouragement over the last two years. I would also like to thank those of you who have emailed me to say thanks or even just hello. Your words were always very welcomed and definitely appreciated.
I have learnt much and have thoroughly enjoyed my time as President and I look forward to working with the new Executive in the Past President role.
I know the new Executive Committee will continue their high standard of work and commitment to you, the members of STANZ, working with you to improve the conditions, recognition and standing of all School Science Technicians.
Nga mihi
Monique Arts.
External Chemical Bunker regulations and Tracking Form
Tracking Form needed for External Chemical Bunkers ONLY
Under the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substance) regulations 2017 Regulation 1.11 subclause (2), laboratories are exempt from certain provisions of the regulations if they meet the conditions in Regulation 18.2 except as provided in Part 18. Laboratories in which hazardous substances are used and stored for the purposes of teaching, meet the exemption criteria.
A laboratory is officially defined in 2.1 of http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1996/0030/latest/DLM381228.html#DLM381228 which means a vehicle, room, building, or any other structure set aside and equipped for scientific experiments or research, for teaching science, or for the development of chemical or medicinal products.
Therefore school laboratories are NOT required to have a person with a Certified Handler Certification. An EXCEPTION to this is if you store or use any class 6.1A (e.g. bromine) or 6.1B (e.g. potassium dichromate) substance or any class 6.1 substance that requires a controlled substance licence, in an external Dangerous Goods/Chemical store or bunker. The exemption provided to school laboratories in Regulation 18.9 (Handling, packaging, and storage of approved hazardous substances Sub-clause 2) does not apply to External Dangerous Goods Bunkers/Chemical Stores as they are seen to be outside of the laboratory.
Schools with an external Dangerous Goods/Chemical store or bunker are required to follow all parts of the Regulations without exemptions when it comes to the hazardous substances stored in the external Dangerous Goods/Chemical store or bunker. Please see Schedule 26 Table 1 and Table 2 for the list of substances that require tracking.
If you are unsure whether your Dangerous Goods/Chemical store or bunker is considered to be external to the laboratories, please refer to Regulation 11.1 and Regulation 11.29 for further information.
Please find a link to a tracking form template created from the specs supplied by WorkSafe NZ and the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substance) regulations 2017.
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2017/0131/latest/whole.html#DLM7311087
President’s report
See our open-access T1 edition of Tech Tonic for a recent report from our President
School Exempt Laboratory letter
As promised, there is now a link to an Exempt Laboratory letter template on our ‘Suppliers’ page.
You can use this to satisfy Chemical Suppliers that your school does not require a Hazardous Substances Certified Handler.
Important Code of Practice announcement
STANZ has been working with the Ministry of Education, WorkSafe, NZASE and a number of other interested parties on the issue of the new Hazardous Substances Regulations.
At a meeting in Wellington during the October holidays we were able to secure a continuance for our Code of Practice for School Exempt Laboratories past the 1st of December this year. This is due to the fact that the new guidance and compliance documents will not be ready by then. However, due to changes in the new Hazardous Substance Regulations linked to the new Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, schools will no longer be able to use adherence to the CoP as a legal defence in the event that an incident occurs. Under HSWA 2015 EVERYONE in a workplace is considered to be responsible for health and safety not just the PCBU (employer) and must take all practicable steps to prevent an incident from occurring. Other than that the new regulations are pretty similar to HSNO.
This continuance means that you can continue to use the CoP (and the guide to the CoP) as a guide of best practice for hazardous substance management.
The Ministry has released an official statement today: http://education.govt.nz/ministry-of-education/specific-initiatives/health-and-safety/news-updates-for-health-and-safety/
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“Removal of the Code of Practice for School Exempt Laboratories
Hazardous Substances Regulations come into effect on 1 December. At this time, the Hazardous Substances Codes of Practice will no longer be applicable.
For school laboratories, the Ministry of Education is working with WorkSafe New Zealand to develop guidance and compliance documents to replace the Code of Practice for School Exempt Laboratories. Until they are released, the Ministry of Education and WorkSafe suggest schools continue to use this Code, as well as the Ministry of Education’s guidance to the Code, (which outlines your responsibilities as a board) as their guidance documents for hazardous substance management.
The Ministry of Education is working with a number of organisations to ensure that schools and their Boards are supported in complying with the regulations.
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Don’t forget to utilize our safety documents page: //stanz.nzase.org.nz/safety-documents/
We will be keeping you updated as things change.
ConSTANZ17
Below are some handouts from presentations at ConSTANZ17:
The Universe via Science and Engineering Technologies – TN Chan
Van der Graaff demonstration – David Cook
Hazardous Substances Management – Hazchem Services Word Inventory Excel Inventory
New Technicians – Monique Arts
Get Your Cellphones Out – Nick Major
And here are some photos, courtesy of Ann and Greg Brimmer, Monique Arts, Sheryl Fitzsimons, Arwen Heyworth and Andrea Paynter