Australian Education Union members vote to accept teacher pay deal

SA’s public school teachers are poised to accept a lucrative final offer from the state government, with union approval. See what the new deal includes.

After more than three months of deadlocked negotiations and two rounds of strike action, the teacher’s union is set to agree to the state government’s latest pay offer.

SA branch president Andrew Gohl said the Australian Education Union would ballot members this week with a recommendation to accept the “improved” bargaining agreement.

“The offer we received today makes several improvements to key measures of our platform and represents the largest-ever investment in a South Australian education Enterprise Agreement,” Mr Gohl said.

“The offer provides a salary increase of 13 per cent over the life of the Enterprise Agreement, which will take SA educators from Australia’s lowest paid to a level closer to the national midpoint.”

Australian Education Union SA President Andrew Gohl.. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Emma Brasier

South Australian Teachers on strike in September. Picture: NCA NewsWIRE / Emma Brasier

A 4 per cent pay bump will be backdated to May 1 this year, with compounding 3 per cent increases each following year.

Mr Gohl said the union was prepared to commence rolling stoppages from next week if the government did not return to the table on Monday with a new offer.

“We’re still going to have to as a state, as a union, to battle for better working conditions,” he said.

“Do I think we’re going to get a better offer? No. But it’s a problem and we’re going to have to wear that in the future, but for now it’s the best we’ve got.

“Public education has been neglected for such a long time and the teacher shortage problems, which are related to excessive workload, are so acute that while we’ve made some inroads, we’ve still got a long way to go.”

The union also secured a raft of other bonuses through what Mr Gohl described as “tough” but “respectful” negotiations.

These include a “right to disconnect” for non-urgent after hours communication, expanding the country allowance to all regional teachers, and paid public holidays for student support officers during term time.

All teachers will receive an extra hour of non-instructional time by 2028 and greater choice on when to use it.

Education Minister Blair Boyer told The Advertiser that cabinet this morning issued the union with a “fourth and final offer”.

During the first round of talks in August, union officials demanded a pay increase of anywhere between 5.5 and 8.6 per cent in line with the current inflation index.

However, the parties could not meet in the middle about the numbers and teachers took industrial action on September 1, and again on November 9.

On each occasion, more than 150 primary and secondary schools across the state closed their doors.

Education Minister Blair Boyer. Picture: Emma Brasier

Mr Boyer previously defended the government’s offers by pointing out that ambulance workers and nurses received comparable pay rises of 2.5 and 3 per cent respectively and that the union’s figures were “impossible from day one”.

But Mr Gohl has rebuked this line of reasoning.

“We’re trying to increase salaries to attract and retain … and it’s important for the public to understand that unless we have those measures we will continue to lose teachers,” he said.

“In the current system not only will we find ourselves losing teachers but the profession is becoming very unattractive to upcoming graduates.”

Reports of poor behaviour from students have soared across the last decade, with nearly 5000 students sent home in 2022 compared to around 3600 in every other year.