The decision will also impact on teachers at Catholic schools, whose wages are tied to those in state schools. The agreement will begin this year and expire in 2016. It would make Victorian teachers at the top of the scale the second highest paid in the nation, after Western Australia. A new process will be introduced to monitor the level of contract employment at schools, education support staff will receive an extra two weeks of annual leave and integration aides can now be employed on contracts of up to seven years. The AEU's council has voted in favour of the agreement, however it must now be be endorsed by all members.

Australian Education Union state president Meredith Peace said there would be no increase in class sizes or face-to-face teaching hours. Ms Peace said it was a historic deal because it achieved a single agreement for all employees - teachers, principals and support staff. "We are confident that this in-principle agreement will play a significant role in addressing state wide staff shortages, provide an incentive for teachers to stay in the classroom and reduce the level of contract employment," she said. She expected the union's members to vote on the in-principle agreement in coming weeks. Premier Denis Napthine refuses to detail how much the pay rise will cost the government, saying it will be revealed in the budget.

He indicated the government had not given up on performance pay and still believed it had merit. "What we are seeing now is a greater emphasis on merit based progression," Dr Napthine said. The dispute has dragged on for more than two years, with the union first submitting its log of claims in December 2010. The protracted industrial campaign included three state-wide strikes, a controversial ban on comments in report cards, and a ban on teachers working outside the 38 hour week. Prior to the state election former Ted Baillieu made his now infamous promise that Victorian teachers would be ‘‘not the worst paid, the best paid’’ in the nation.

As a result, the union lodged a claim for a 30 per cent pay rise over three years.



However soon after being elected, the state government reneged on its promise and offered a pay rise of just 2.5 per cent a year, with anything above that to be matched by productivity offers. In November last year the union put a significantly revised salary position to the state government – 12.6 per cent over three years – but the government refused to budge on pay. However earlier this year it dropped its demand for performance pay for teachers, which the union had staunchly opposed on the grounds it was uncollegiate and divisive. As the industrial action escalated, teachers faced a backlash from parents who became fed-up as the impact of the bans began to bite. The ban on comments in report cards was particularly unpopular, with parents saying it would hurt children, especially those who had learning difficulties or were applying to attend another school the following year.

The ban on teachers working outside the 38 hour week also meant some schools were forced to cancel excursions, after-school sport, music and theatre productions and camps, which impacted on local economies such as the Surf Coast, a popular camping destination. However an education department memo suggesting time teachers spent at camps outside of their allocated 38 hours a week did not count as working hours enraged both teachers and parents alike. Other industrial action included rolling half-day strikes, a ban on implementing the national curriculum, and the use of the ultranet, a secure internet site that students, parents and teachers can access and a ban on responding to education department emails. The stoush got ugly in January this year, when the state government took the union to court to try to prevent teachers striking on February 14 – despite having recently resumed negotiations after a prolonged stand-off. But Justice Christopher Jessup said the government had failed to convince him the action was unlawful and criticised the government for waiting more than two years after the log of claims was first served to seek an injunction.

On 14 February the historic strike went ahead – the first time in more than 25 years there had been three state-wide teachers’ strikes in a 12-month period.