Teachers would be pitted against school principals on Friday when tutors from 2,200 schools in New South Wales (NSW) strike over more powers to be given to principals.

The planned industrial action, which is expected to affect up to 750,000 students, prompted the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) to step in on Wednesday over the row between the Department of Education and the NSW Teachers Federation.

Initial plans call for the teachers to attend stop-work meetings from 9 to 11 a.m. on Friday. Education Minister Adrian Piccoli said the IRC action seeks to stop the industrial action through the issuance of an order.

However, NSW Teachers Federation President Maure Mulheron called on parents to make alternative arrangements for their children on Friday since most of the schools will be shuttered and the campaign will likely be prolonged.

The tutors disagree with the reform policy called Local Schools, Local Decisions which grants principals greater control over full-time and temporary staff decisions as well as hiring decisions and deciding teachers' salaries based on performance instead of experience.

Mr Mulheron claimed that a group is working secretly with accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers since August for budgetary control to be granted to principals.

He compared that move to having accountants design an education system.

"If you give principals buckets of money they will get rid of class size formula... they will turn permanent positions into casual positions and they will get rid of executive staff and specialists teachers," ABC quoted Mr Mulheron.

Mr Piccoli said the Education Department will not be held ransom by the teachers' union. He stressed the reforms - the biggest for the education system in more than five decades - were made to suit students, not unions.

Friday is still a vital day for NSW students since it is the day for pupils who missed the NAPLAN tests on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.