More than 160 preschools and public schools across South Australia are set to close on Friday as teachers strike for better pay and conditions.
The South Australian Education Union has planned to strike on Friday, September 1 after 80 per cent of members voted in favour of industrial action for the first time since 2019.
There will be 167 public schools and preschools closed on Friday if strike action goes ahead as planned, which both the union president and education minister said is most likely.
An additional 152 public schools and preschools will be open in various capacities, including some running reduced programs for students.
There will be 608 schools operating as usual.
The union said failed negotiations with the government have been underway for nine months.
The union wants an 8.6 per cent pay rise in the new enterprise agreement with the government, followed by a 5.5 per cent increase in the two years after.
It also wants a support officer in every classroom.
There are also calls for teachers to have more time to complete admin work.
After a number of meetings since the union agreed on industrial action about 5pm on Tuesday, union branch president Andrew Gohl said there had been “some understanding” from the government about the pressures on the workforce.
“At the moment there’s still an issue around workloads and there’s still an issue around pay and a number of other matters,” Gohl said.
The South Australian government offered a 3 per cent pay increase per year over three years, but the union said that doesn’t “come close to supporting a workforce at breaking point”.
Education Minister Blair Boyer made it clear the government doesn’t want teachers to strike.
Boyer said parents needed to plan for the industrial action tomorrow and make arrangements for students who would not have school.
However, he said the government was working with schools that were closed to ensure children who turned up for class were looked after.
“If there are one or two students who are dropped off unexpectedly there will be someone at every site in South Australia to make sure that we can care for those or get back in touch with the parents,” he added.
(9 News)
