Action needed to improve the safety and wellbeing of principals
****UPDATED FOR THE POINT, MAY 2025****
The IEU is calling for urgent action to protect school leaders following the latest Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey, which highlights rising stress, violence, and threats against principals.
The survey revealed that in 2024, 50% of 2,182 respondents reported experiencing violence, and 54.5% were threatened with it.
Kylie Busk, Deputy General Secretary of IEU Victoria Tasmania, warned of a looming leadership crisis if action is not taken.
‘In recent years, this survey has brought frightening insights about violence and stress endured by principals. We already see that principal vacancy rates have risen, and the next generation of potential school leaders are questioning whether they are prepared to take on a role that put them at risk in this way.
‘The safety of principals must be prioritised, or we risk a leadership vacuum developing in schools as experienced and dedicated principals choose to leave the sector.’
In response, the union is exploring the formation of Designated Work Groups specifically for principals in Catholic schools. This would allow principals to elect their own occupational health and safety (OHS) representatives, who would play a key role in identifying and addressing workplace hazards that affect school leaders.
The move aims to ensure that principals receive the same protections and support as other staff, with a stronger focus on their unique challenges and responsibilities.
Kylie said the OHS safety crisis in schools requires ‘immediate intervention’.
Parental abuse
Kylie called for strong measures to curb inappropriate behaviour from parents and caregivers, ensuring a safe and respectful environment for school leaders.
‘We must highlight this as a social issue, restoring common decency and respect for educators. All of society must confront the unacceptable health risks faced by educators, especially principals, who are increasingly targeted by aggressive students and parents.
‘This behaviour wouldn’t be tolerated in any other profession.’
The IEU is recommending that Victorian and Tasmanian schools use Victorian School Community Safety Orders as a model to help safeguard school staff and students from harmful or abusive behaviour. These orders give principals the authority to act against individuals who threaten school safety and provide a crucial tool for school leaders faced with a threat to school safety.
A principal, if acting under delegation or with departmental approval, can use a Community Safety Order to exclude a person (such as a parent or community member) from school grounds, events, or contact with specific staff or students. The order can also impose conditions on how or when that person may attend the school or communicate with staff or students.
Associate Professor Paul Kidson, a former principal and an Educational Leadership scholar at Australian Catholic University which conducts the survey, says that threats often came from parents and caregivers who sent hostile emails or appeared at schools to intimidate staff.
He also highlighted the rise of cyberbullying, with parents posting ‘unconscionable things with a sense of impunity’. With worsening safety conditions and increasing workloads, over half of principals are considering leaving the profession.
In the government school system, the Victoria’s Independent Office for School Dispute Resolution deals with situations where families and schools cannot resolve their differences.
The body’s chair, Frank Handy, told The Age that parents defaming teachers or principals online should face a $1000 fine to stamp out abuse. He said a $1000 fine system or a similar penalty, overseen by a body like the eSafety Commissioner, could function as a deterrent in the same way a speeding ticket does for drivers.
‘You don’t sign up for the challenge of parents being abusive to you,’ he said. ‘Parents should not be doing this.’
National Principals Reference Group, November 2024.
The workload scourge
Kylie also urged the government and employers ‘to take decisive action in addressing heavy workloads – the leading cause of stress for school leaders’.
‘Prolonged exposure to intense work-related stress and competing demands places school leaders at higher risk than many other workers, so employers must do more to assess and address the multiple hazards involved in their role.
‘And while society must confront the unacceptable risks being endured by educators, we must treat this as an occupational health and safety issue. Practical measures can and must be taken immediately.’
Kylie stressed the importance of maintaining federal support for the National Principal Reference Group (NPRG), established after last year’s survey. This advisory body includes principals from government, Catholic, and independent schools, and provides critical feedback on education policies affecting school leaders.
The IEU believes that collaborative forums like this are essential for principals and employers across all schools to share best practices and work toward effective solutions.
Despite these challenges faced by principals, she praised the resilience and commitment of school leaders, citing the survey’s findings: ‘… despite the spike in violence and the toll on mental health and wellbeing, the survey found school leaders showed surprisingly high levels of job satisfaction, and their work commitment remained high.’
The IEU recommends:
The federal government should reduce excessive administrative burdens by streamlining compliance requirements and holding school employers accountable for meaningful change.
Work impact assessments should be expanded to all areas of education policy to prevent ever-increasing workloads.
The survey recommends:
Addressing heavy workloads by increasing school leader resources and support.
Prioritising wellbeing initiatives for principals.
Exploring alternative leadership models, such as co-principalship.
Implementing protections like the Victorian School Community Safety Order to combat inappropriate behaviour from parents and caregivers.
The Reality: Increasing Threats and Violence
The survey’s findings paint a troubling picture:
50% of the 2,182 school leaders surveyed in 2024 reported experiencing violence.
54.5% were threatened with violence—the highest rate recorded since the survey’s inception in 2011.
Physical violence against school leaders has increased by 81.6% since 2011.
Students were responsible for 80.4% of threats.
Offensive behaviours escalated in 2024, with nearly half (49.6%) of principals experiencing physical violence.
The top five stressors for principals were:
Heavy workloads
Lack of time to focus on teaching and learning
Student-related issues
Staff mental health
Student mental health
Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey