Australian teacher pay is unsettled in three states at once. Victorian teachers have now rejected two offers and struck twice, Queensland has gone past bargaining into arbitration, and Western Australia has a fresh claim on the table. At the same time, private schools are signing agreements that pay senior classroom teachers up to $190,000. This is where each dispute actually stands as at 29 July 2026, what the numbers are, and what they pay after tax.
Key takeaways
- Victorian members rejected a revised 28% over four years offer on 19 July, by just over 51%, and struck for 24 hours on 23 July. No agreement is in place.
- Queensland is in arbitration at the QIRC. The QTU seeks 24% over three years against an 8% government offer, with most members unpaid a rise since 1 July 2024.
- Western Australia’s union is claiming 15% over two years on wages and allowances.
- Private school agreements now reach $190,000 at the top in NSW and Victoria, with entry-level roles above $100,000.
- None of this changes take-home pay yet. Existing state scales apply until an agreement is certified.
Where every state stands
Three states have live disputes. The figures below are the headline claim and the headline offer, which is not the same as what any individual teacher would receive: the Victorian package varied by role, and the Queensland claim is structured as staged annual increases.
| State | Union claim | Government offer | Status at 29 July 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria | 35% over 3 years (AEU opening claim) | 28% over 4 years, revised, including support staff | Rejected 19 July by 51% of members. Strike held 23 July. Unresolved. |
| Queensland | 24% over 3 years (3% then 7% a year) | 8% over 3 years | In arbitration at the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission. |
| Western Australia | 15% over 2 years, wages and allowances | No public offer confirmed at research date | Claim lodged. Bargaining in progress. |
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the ACT had no comparable live public dispute at research date. Their current scales are on the teacher take-home pay page.
Victoria: two rejections and a strike
Victoria is the most advanced and the most stuck. The Australian Education Union opened with a claim of 35% over three years, arguing Victorian teachers had fallen behind other states. Victoria currently pays the lowest graduate starting salary in the country at $79,589, which is $63,601 after tax and the Medicare levy for 2026-27.
What makes the Victorian dispute unusual is that members have twice voted against their own union’s recommendation. The May in-principle agreement was worth 28% to 32% over four years depending on role. Deputy Premier and Education Minister Ben Carroll said it “would have made Victorian teachers and education support staff the best paid in the country together with the best conditions”. Members rejected it anyway, and rejected the revised version too.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| Early 2025 | Enterprise bargaining opens. The AEU claims 35% over three years, arguing Victorian teachers are paid well below other states. |
| March 2026 | First statewide 24-hour strike in 13 years. About 35,000 teachers and supporters rally in Melbourne. |
| 15 May 2026 | In-principle agreement announced: rises of 28% to 32% over four years depending on role, plus additional student-free days. |
| 19 June 2026 | Members reject the deal against their union’s advice, citing workloads, school funding and support staff pay. |
| Mid-July 2026 | Government returns with a revised offer: 28% over four years now including support staff, and compulsory meetings halved. |
| 19 July 2026 | More than 50,000 members vote. Just over 51% reject it. |
| 23 July 2026 | Second 24-hour strike. Members march from Bourke Street Mall to Parliament House. |
AEU Victoria branch president Justin Mullaly said members wanted a three-year deal and meaningful action on workload, not pay alone: “Our members are carrying the weight of all the excessive workload.” The government has not set out its next step, and Mr Carroll has said his door remains open.
Queensland: 24% and arbitration
Queensland has left bargaining behind. After the Queensland Teachers’ Union rejected successive offers, the Department applied to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission, and the dispute is now being arbitrated rather than negotiated. That matters for teachers waiting on money: arbitration is a legal process with its own timetable, and Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek has said the union was “fully aware” that choosing it would significantly delay any increase.
The QTU, with 50,000 members, is seeking 24% over three years, structured as an initial 3% followed by 7% in each of three years. The government’s standing offer is 8% over three years, the same offer Queensland police and paramedics accepted. The union’s submission rests on independent analysis it commissioned from University of Sydney Business School economists. Acting general secretary Brendan Crotty noted that most Queensland teachers and school leaders have had no salary increase since 1 July 2024.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| February 2025 | The Queensland Department of Education formally opens bargaining for a replacement certified agreement. |
| June 2025 | The QTU receives a government offer and formally rejects it. |
| 28 July 2025 | After a further rejection, the Department applies to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission for assistance. |
| 6 August 2025 | QTU members hold a 24-hour stop-work action. |
| 25 November 2025 | A second 24-hour strike is held. |
| 4 June 2026 | The QTU lodges a 24% arbitration submission, built on analysis it commissioned from University of Sydney Business School economists. |
Western Australia and the rest
Western Australia’s state school teachers’ union has lodged a claim for 15% over two years covering wages and allowances. No government counter-offer was publicly confirmed at research date, so this remains a claim rather than a deal.
Separately from any state agreement, the Fair Work Commission’s 2026 Annual Wage Review lifted minimum award rates by 4.75% from 1 July 2026. That moves the award floor, including the Educational Services (Teachers) Award, but almost no public school teacher is paid at award rates. The award graduate floor is $75,684, or $60,945after tax, which sits below every state’s actual starting salary.
Private schools reach $190,000
While public sector bargaining stalls, private school agreements signed through 2026 have pushed top-of-scale classroom salaries close to $200,000, with entry-level roles at some schools starting above $100,000. These are the best-paying schools in each state rather than sector averages, but they set the comparison point that public sector unions are now arguing from.
| State | Top classroom salary | Take-home after tax (2026-27) |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales and ACT | $190,000 | $134,830 |
| Victoria | $190,000 | $134,830 |
| Queensland | $180,000 | $128,730 |
| South Australia | $170,000 | $122,630 |
| Tasmania | $155,000 | $113,480 |
Take-home is for an Australian resident for 2026-27, after income tax and the 2% Medicare levy, with 12% super paid on top and no study loan. A HECS-HELP debt reduces every figure above; see the HECS-HELP repayment calculator.
What the figures pay after tax
Percentages in a pay dispute are easy to quote and hard to feel. The table below puts the numbers that actually appear in these disputes through the 2026-27 tax scale.
| Benchmark | Gross | Net a year | Net a fortnight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Award graduate floor | $75,684 | $60,945 | $2,344 |
| Victorian graduate, current | $79,589 | $63,601 | $2,446 |
| Private school entry level | $100,000 | $77,480 | $2,980 |
| Secondary teacher median | $120,744 | $91,586 | $3,523 |
| Private school top of scale | $190,000 | $134,830 | $5,186 |
Two things to keep in mind if one of these disputes settles. A rise is ordinary income, taxed at your marginal rate, so a headline percentage is not the percentage that reaches your account. And any amount paid for an earlier period is back pay, which the ATO withholds under a separate schedule rather than the normal tax table, so a settlement lump sum often looks heavily taxed on the payslip before it settles at assessment.
Teacher pay 2026 FAQ
Sources
Every claim above traces to one of the following. External links are provided for verification and open in a new tab.
- ABC News, Here’s what you need to know about the Victorian teachers strike tomorrow (21 July 2026): the 35% opening claim, the March strike and 35,000 rally, the 28% to 32% in-principle deal, the June rejection, the revised 28% offer including support staff, the 50,000-member vote and the 51% rejection, and quotes from Justin Mullaly and Ben Carroll.
- ABC News, Union reaches in-principle deal giving Victorian teachers up to 32pc pay rise (14 May 2026): the in-principle agreement.
- ABC News, Victorian teachers reject pay offer against union advice (19 June 2026): the first member rejection.
- ABC News, Protestors say Victorian teacher rally a ‘watershed moment’ (23 July 2026): the second 24-hour strike.
- EducationHQ, Union demands 24 per cent pay rise for Qld teachers as industrial dispute rolls on (4 June 2026): the QTU 24% claim and its 3% then 7% structure, the 8% government offer accepted by police and paramedics, the 50,000 membership, no increase since 1 July 2024, the University of Sydney Business School analysis, the February 2025 to November 2025 timeline, and quotes from Brendan Crotty and John-Paul Langbroek.
- The West Australian, ‘Not fit for purpose’: WA teachers seek bumper pay rise (July 2026): the WA claim of 15% over two years on wages and allowances.
- News Corp state mastheads, NSW and ACT, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania (25 to 26 July 2026): the per-state private school top-of-scale figures and the entry-level figure above $100,000.
- Independent Education Union, Annual wage decision delivered (2 June 2026): the Fair Work Commission 2026 Annual Wage Review increase of 4.75% to minimum award rates from 1 July 2026.
- Salary benchmarks (award floor $75,684, secondary teacher median $120,744, Victorian graduate $79,589) are carried from
research/teacher-pay.mdandresearch/salaries-professions.md, sourced to the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025 via Jobs and Skills Australia, and the Educational Services (Teachers) Award 2020 (MA000077).
All take-home figures are computed by this site’s 2026-27 tax engine from the published ATO rates, not transcribed. See the methodology and the disclaimer. Last verified 29 July 2026.
This is a developing dispute. Where a settlement is reached, this page will be updated with a dated note under the editorial policy.
