The NSW Teachers Federation (NSWTF) will strike for pay rises and more planning time next week despite an order from the Industrial Relations Commission for them to cancel the event.
“The teacher shortages are too large and their cause, uncompetitive salaries, and unmanageable workloads, too great for teachers and principals not to proceed with this action,” NSWTF President Angelo Gavrielatos said.
Negotiations over a new enterprise agreement are at a stalemate. The federation is calling for a pay rise of 5 percent a year with an extra 2.5 percent to recognise extra experience, as well as two more hours of planning time a week.
However, the Department of Education is curtailed by the government’s public sector wage cap, introduced amid strikes in 2011, which limits increases to 2.5 percent a year. The policy only allows the cap to be exceeded if productivity gains are negotiated.
Beginner teachers in NSW earn $72,263 a year compared with $75,471 for those in Queensland. Teachers in the highest paying bands will earn $107,779 in NSW compared with $108,000 to 110,000 in Queensland.
Source: SMH
