WYNDHAM teachers and principals are expected to walk off the job next week after pay negotiations with the state government collapsed.
The Australian Education Union and the government have been in negotiations for eight months, with teachers claiming their work has been undervalued for too long.
Union members will today decide whether to call a 24-hour statewide strike on June 7.
The union says salaries, class sizes, workloads and high levels of contract employment remain the sticking points.
Teachers are seeking a 30per cent pay rise over three years and a maximum class size of 20 students. But the government says the requests are unrealistic and unsustainable.
Point Cook Senior College teacher Matt McLaren said teachers wanted the government to recognise their hard work.
Mr McLaren said it had been a tough 12 months for Wyndham schools, with funding to a number of vital programs cut.
AEU state branch president Mary Bluett said teachers did not take industrial action lightly. She said the best-paid teachers in Western Australia and NSW received $7441 and $2822 more than their Victorian counterparts.
“The Premier [Ted Baillieu] promised to make Victorian government-employed teachers the highest paid in the nation but has backed down on his pledge,” she said.
“His offer of a 2.5per cent pay rise, when the cost of living is running at around 3per cent, is effectively a pay cut.
“To ensure every Victorian student receives the education they deserve, we need to attract and retain the best quality teachers.”
