Through years of determined organising and collective action, members of our union in 2024 won government-funded 15 pay rises delivering around 10,000 more annually for educators, transforming standards across the sector and establishing new benchmarks for valuing women’s work.
In a historically significant victory for women workers in Australian history, members of our union won a groundbreaking 15% government-funded pay increase in 2024. This historic win, affecting up to 200,000 educators nationwide, came after years of determined organising, nationwide action, political lobbying and public campaigns that forced both employers and government to finally recognise the true value of early education.
The victory culminated in October 2024 with an unprecedented agreement covering multiple major providers. Through the power of collective bargaining, 12,000 educators secured guaranteed pay rises of 10% before Christmas 2024, with another 5% to follow in December 2025. The agreement’s reach expanded further when another 16,000 educators at Goodstart Early Learning won the same increases, demonstrating how united action can lift standards across an entire sector.
This transformation means experienced Certificate III educators will receive nearly $11,000 more annually – a life-changing increase in a sector where workers have been chronically underpaid for decades. The win directly confronts the sector’s devastating workforce crisis, where severe understaffing has left the workforce 8% below required levels and 60% of educators were planning to leave within three years due to unsustainable conditions.
Most significantly, this victory establishes a pathway for up to 200,000 educators across the sector to win the full 15% increase, subject to providers agreeing to caps on fee increases. This creates a new standard for the sector that recognises the professional skills and crucial importance of early educators, 97% of whom are women who have faced systematic undervaluation of their work.
The scale of this win demonstrates the immense power of sustained member organising. From workplace actions to community campaigning, from national action to political lobbying and public advocacy, educators proved that when workers unite and fight, they can transform not just their own conditions but establish new benchmarks for fairness across the entire workforce.
“This is a monumental moment. It is history making. This means I can stay in the job I love and I know that it is going to change a lot of lives, not just my own. Government has delivered the missing piece needed to stop the crisis in our sector.” – Lisa Bonser, Early Childhood Educator, NSW
“It really does mean a lot to me for this to happen… there’s all the girls at work that have young children and they’re moving back in with their parents because they can’t afford expenses, or they’re taking on a second job. I want to see them be recognised and get the money that they deserve and need, because it’s not an easy job.” – Christine, Early Childhood Educator, NSW