Revised pay offer for primary school teachers ‘strong, fair’, Public Service Commission says

Saturday, 6 September 2025

The Public Service Commission has announced a revised pay offer for primary school teachers, describing it as a “strong, fair” response to cost-of-living pressures.

Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche said the new offer targeted experienced teachers at the top of the pay scale, who would receive the largest increases.

Teachers still progressing up the scale would continue receiving annual pay rises outpacing inflation.

If accepted, the new offer would cost an additional $449 million over four years, and deliver a 4.7% increase within the first 12 months.

“This is a very good offer,” Sir Brian said. “It’s better than reasonable – it’s a targeted, fiscally responsible package that delivers meaningful increases for teachers at all stages of their careers.”

He added that the commission had “stretched [its] fiscal mandate to its limits” to present the offer, signalling no further movement on pay.

Sir Brian said the government was eager to avoid prolonged industrial action that could affect learning.

“This is a substantially improved offer that demonstrates the importance we place on investing in a quality teaching workforce.”

Similar offers were being discussed with secondary school teachers, a statement from the PSC said.

Pay offer impacts

A primary school teacher with eight years of experience could currently earn over $120,000, including allowances, the statement said.

The average salary for primary school teachers was increasing from $85,000 three years ago to $94,000 now. The offer was on top of a further 3.9% to 7.7% in pay increases already built-in for teachers who were not yet at the top of their pay scale. This came after primary teachers received pay advances of up to 14.5% in the last three years.

In dollar terms, the current offer equated to pay increases between $3803 and $9408 in the first year of the proposed agreement, with regular annual progression included.

Over two years, for those who were not at their top step, it meant increases of between $7757 and $16,926, depending on where teachers were on the base pay scale, the statement said.

The average salary for primary school teachers increased from around $85,000 three years ago to over $94,000 now, with approximately 57% of full-time primary teachers now earning between $90,000 and $110,000, with 16% earning over $110,000.