The Minns Labor Government is on track to make the state’s 95,000 public school teachers the best paid in the country which will help tackle the teacher shortage crisis after positive discussions with the teachers’ union.

The NSW Teachers Federation is now considering an offer made by the Minns Labor Government.

If agreed to, the offer will see teachers jump from being among the worst paid, to being the best paid in the country, and restore competitiveness.

The four-year agreement will see the starting salary for a NSW teacher increase from $75,791 to $85,000 and the salary for top of the scale teachers increase from $113,042 to $122,100.

All teachers will benefit from a restructuring of the pay scale.

Wages in the following three years will continue to rise in line with the Minns Labor Government’s wages policy.

This offer recognises the value of the work that NSW teachers do and was informed by findings of the Gallop Report.

Previously, teachers in NSW were constrained by the former Liberal National government’s now defunct wages cap, degrading their pay to among the worst in the nation and creating a teacher shortage crisis.

In fact, under the former Government, for the first time in recent memory, teacher resignations outstripped retirements in NSW.

The offer will require the agreement of the Teachers Federation Council on Saturday.

The Labor government was elected with a mandate to improve the pay and conditions of teachers in NSW, and to fix serious issues in our education system.

The Minns Labor Government is setting out a long-term plan to repair the budget in a sustainable way, to rebuild the essential services we all rely on and to reinvest in our essential workers.

There is nothing more important than educating the future generations of kids and ensuring there are teachers in front of classrooms.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said:

“The Minns Labor Government is hopeful this agreement will be made, so NSW teachers can get the pay rise they so urgently deserve.

“Negotiating an outcome that demonstrates respect to teachers has always been my highest priority.

“In order to tackle the teacher shortage crisis we must restore respect to the teaching profession, so teachers are free to do their jobs without additional stress.”

“While there is much more to do, today marks an important step forward as we continue working to rebuild our state’s education system.”