Victorian Teachers Strike July 23 After Narrowly Rejecting 28.3% Pay Offer

Victorian public school teachers will strike for 24 hours on Thursday, July 23, after rejecting the state government’s pay offer by a narrow margin. More than 50,677 union members voted 51.18% to 48.82% against a 28.3% pay rise over four years. The Australian Education Union cited excessive workloads, inadequate school funding, and insufficient support staff pay as reasons for the rejection. Schools will close and tens of thousands of educators are expected to march through Melbourne’s CBD.

Why the deal fell through

The Victorian government offered a 28.3% pay rise over four years on July 17, an improvement on an earlier proposal rejected in June. The new offer included a 1% bonus for teachers and principals at the top pay scale, reduced compulsory after-school meetings, and converted allowances into base pay for education support staff. Union members still voted it down, saying the offer did not address workload pressures or class sizes. AEU Victorian branch president Justin Mullaly said conditions, not just pay, were at the heart of the dispute.

The long road to this strike

Enterprise bargaining negotiations between the AEU and state government stalled over a year ago. The union initially demanded a 35% pay rise over three years, arguing Victorian teachers earned far less than counterparts in other states. After no progress, union members voted for their first statewide strike in 13 years in March, with an estimated 35,000 people marching through Melbourne’s CBD. An in-principle agreement reached in May offered 28 to 32% over four years, but members rejected it in June citing funding and workload gaps.

What happens on strike day

Teachers and supporters will gather at Bourke Street Mall at 10:30am on Thursday before marching to Parliament House. The 24-hour stopwork action will close most Victorian public schools. Some schools are running Year 7 classes and camps with non-union staff to provide supervision for younger students. The Independent Education Union confirmed members will take solidarity actions while continuing their own bargaining.

The government’s next move

Premier Jacinta Allan’s Labor government has not yet responded with a new offer. Mullaly said the government must step up and lock in school funding to resolve the dispute. He noted that only three in ten public school teachers plan to stay in Victorian public schools, signalling a retention crisis. The government has deliberately ripped $2.4 billion out of public schools, according to union claims.

Final Thoughts

With union membership growing from 35,915 in March to over 50,677 in July, teacher discontent is deepening. The government faces pressure to improve its offer on pay and conditions before negotiations resume. The strike signals the dispute is far from resolved.

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