Teachers to get backdated pay rise immediately
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Teachers will get a pay rise backdated to September 5.
State school teachers and school administrators in Western Australia will get an immediate 6 per cent pay rise.
The Premier, Colin Barnett, says the increase will be backdated to September 5.
He says it will make West Australian teachers the highest paid in the country.
Last month, teachers overwhelmingly rejected a pay offer by the previous government for increases of between 15 and 21 per cent over three years.
Mr Barnett says he expects today's announcement will go a long way towards resolving the long running pay dispute.
"It has been something that has been achieved within our first two weeks in government and I regard it as a major achievement of the new Liberal National government," he said.
"I congratulate the Education Minister, Liz Constable, for sitting down and working with the teachers union."
The pay rise is the first instalment of a three year Enterprise Bargaining Agreement which is still being negotiated with teachers.
Pay rise accepted
The State School Teachers Union (SSTU) has unanimously accepted the government's six per cent pay rise.
The president of the SSTU, Anne Gisborne, says it is a positive step but their full three year agreement still needs to be finalised.
"I think it's a breakthrough in the sense that is an improved quantum, it's recognising a need to get money into teacher's pay packets as soon as possible, but what we haven't got is resolution to the overall negotiations process," she said.
The SSTU says it still has concerns over pay and workloads and is preparing its case for arbitration.
Education Minister Liz Constable says she is hopeful arbitration can be avoided.
"I'm really hoping we can," she said.
"I think this decision today sets the scene for everyone to get around the table and negotiate the issues that are outstanding."
