Victorian teachers to walk off job over pay fight

Thousands of Victorian teachers have vowed to walk off the job in term one next year as they demand a bigger pay rise and lighter workloads.

Victoria’s schoolteachers last walked off the job in 2013.

Thousands of Victorian teachers are set to walk off the job in term one next year as they fight for a larger pay rise and lighter workloads.

The Australian Education Union has warned the state government it will escalate its industrial campaign with a 24-hour stop-work and mass gathering early next year if a new agreement has not been signed.

A motion passed by the union’s joint primary and secondary schools council on Friday determined to take the single-day strike in term one 2022, and to consider further stoppages.

“Whilst sufficient progress has been made to date to warrant ongoing negotiations in good faith with a view to try to reach agreement, Joint Council notes that, to date, DET (Department of Education and Training) have not adequately addressed the union’s log of claims,” the motion stated.

“If the campaign needs to be escalated, a 24-hour stopwork, with the intention to hold a mass meeting … will be authorised to be held in term one 2022.”

Victorian public teachers say they work an average of 15 unpaid hours per week.

Victorian government school teachers have not walked off the job since a series of statewide strikes in 2013.

Among the sticking points in the negotiations between the Department of Education and the union, which have continued for almost a year, is a push for a 7 per cent pay rise for each of the next three years and a 6.5 per cent increase to their superannuation.

Last month, public school staff announced they would ban Victorian state Labor MPs from visiting campuses as part of three additional industrial bans by teachers and principals.

Other measures being taken include bans on responding to DET emails, and implementing the updated Framework for Improving Student Outcomes.

Australian Education Union Victorian Branch president Meredith Peace said the union’s Victorian branch continued to negotiate in good faith with the Department of Education and Training.

“However, key claims about workload and salaries have not yet been adequately addressed by the DET, despite a year at the bargaining table and the current agreement expiring in April this year,” she said.

“The Andrews Labor government must address public schoolteachers, principals and education support staff concerns about excessive and unsustainable workloads, deliver fair and reasonable salaries and address underfunding of public schools.

“The AEU believes sufficient progress has been made to date to warrant ongoing negotiations in good faith to achieve a new agreement that delivers workload relief, and salaries that value school staff. However, if the Andrews government does not adequately address the union’s log of claims, the AEU will consider escalating the campaign in term 1 2022, including a 24-hour stopwork, if necessary.”

Education Minister James Merlino said: “We’ll continue to negotiate in good faith with our hardworking teachers and school staff”.

Victorian public teachers work an additional 15 unpaid hours per week on average, while principals regularly work 60-hour weeks on average.