Talks planned to try to stop teacher strikes next month

Teachers and the Ministry of Education will head to facilitation to try to resolve differences before teachers go on strike next month.

Teachers have voted overwhelmingly for more strikes in an effort to get smaller class sizes, more resources and a significant increase in salaries.

The Employment Relations Authority has accepted the joint application that was urgently lodged by both the Ministry and the New Zealand Education Institute Te Riu Roa .

The union's president, Lynda Stuart, said facilitation had been agreed on because the negotiations had gone on for a long time and the strike would impact on the public.

Teachers wanted to settle the collective bargaining before taking rolling strike action, Ms Stuart said.

If the mediation fails to reach an agreement, teachers' strikes will begin on 12 November in the Auckland region and continue across the country for a week.

The date for mediation has not yet been set.