Public school teachers have voted overwhelmingly to accept a salaries and conditions package at meetings across the state today.
Schools were staffed with minimal supervision while teachers attended mass meetings at 210 venues across the state to hear a report on Award negotiations which have just concluded.
Teachers will be paid an extra 2.5% from January 2020 and an increase of 2.28% from 2021 with another .22% paid as superannuation.
NSW Teachers Federation President Maurie Mulheron said this is the maximum increase allowable under the restrictive NSW Public Sector Wages Policy.
Importantly, all conditions under which teachers currently work have been protected in the new Award, as well as important improvements.
They include:
· Preservation of the School Counselling service;
· Protection of the status of Aboriginal Student Liaison officers, Home School Liaison officers;
· Improvements for teachers at the Saturday School of Community Languages;
· Resolution of the pre-2016 salary anomaly.
Mr Mulheron said teachers had also voted to condemn the NSW Government for its unjust wages policy which includes a 2.5% salary cap and restricts access to the NSW Industrial Relations Commission to run Work Value cases.
“NSW is the only state with legislation to enforce its salary cap which applies to all employee-related costs including salaries, wages, allowances and other remuneration, improvements to conditions, staffing levels, superannuation and other employment benefits,” he said.
