After being overwhelmingly endorsed by AEU members, the Victorian Government Schools Agreement came into effect on July 30.

The Workplace Authority's ruling that the agreement passed the no disadvantage test paved the way for pay rises and back pay to be made to teachers and principals on August 14.

In a ballot of AEU delegates, 89% voted in favour of the agreement. A further secret ballot of all school teachers and principals produced a vote of 84% in favour, the highest level of support for an agreement in recent years.

All pay rises have been backdated to May 11. Most teachers and principals also received a one-off payment of $1000-$2000 in the pay period of August 28.

An Implementation Guide (PDF, 1.2MB) has been produced and distributed to schools to help them get the most out of the agreement.

Below are links to the main Agreement documents with further information in the News and Background Information areas at the bottom of this page.

Schools Agreement 2008 Documents

Schools Agreement 2008 Guides

2008 Schools Agreement at a glance

• $10,000 pay rise from May 11 for 16,000 teachers
• Around $5,000 pay rise for 5,000 teachers
• $1000, $1500 or $2000 bonuses for most teachers/principals
• Pay increases which average between 5.2% and 11.5% per year
• Top rung classroom teachers now best paid in Australia
• Best starting salary in Australia
• Crackdown on contract abuse
• Guaranteed summer pay for contract teachers who work full year and pro rata school holiday pay for all others
• No loss of pupil free days
• No loss of holidays
• Enhanced consultation
• Laptop discounts