Stand together and create a better future for ECEC

Educators across the country are calling for big and ambitious changes to our working conditions.

Show your support for these changes by clicking here

The Multi Employer Agreement helped win a 15 per cent pay rise – now it’s time to build on that.

The changes we want to see

  • We aren’t going backwards – hold the 15% above the award.
  • Increase ECEC wages by another 5% above the award in November 2026 and 5% above the award in November 2027.
  • Lower gender undervaluation increases to be brought under the umbrella of higher ECEC wage increases.
  • “Cost of living” award increases in July each year must be paid (on top of ECEC wage increases).
  • Move to a new classification structure outlined in the gender undervaluation timetable.
  • No one left behind: staff who received no award increases through gender undervaluation (Early Childhood Teachers and support staff) to keep pace with the increases of everyone else.
  • A new directors classification structure (not the Award “one rate”).
  • Permanent wage increase – not an allowance!

Background
The Fair Work Commission’s gender undervaluation decision is moving far too slowly and fails to include several key groups of workers. Without a firm commitment to extend the Worker Retention Payment, many workers could actually go backwards for seven months. The payment ends in November 2026, while Award increases don’t take effect until June 2026.

Under the current proposal, most workers would see only a 17% to 18% increase stretched out to 2029. That timeframe and scale of the pay rise is not good enough for a workforce that has waited too long already.

  • No Under The Roof Ratios.
  • Consistent national ratios.
  • No additional tasks (such as cleaning).
  • Trainees not counted for ratios.
  • Inclusion support- funded staff not counted for ratios.
  • Ratios to take into account children with special needs.
  • Details to be developed: essentially that according to level of additional need, children would attract a higher level of staffing.

Background
Current educator-to-child ratios don’t consider whether children in a room have additional needs — or how many do. The Inclusion Support Program is underfunded, difficult to access, and prioritises children with a formal diagnosis, leaving many without support.

Educators report that in some rooms, nearly half the children show behavioural challenges, developmental delays, or significant disabilities. Without additional resourcing, children with higher needs miss out on the support they deserve, and other children receive less attention as educators are forced into reactive, crisis-driven care.

The impact on educators is profound. The surge in children needing additional support is fuelling burnout at the very moment the ECEC sector needs more staff, not fewer.

  • Two days of paid professional development for all educators.
  • Centres to be shut (equivalent to pupil-free days in schools) to enable educators to access onsite professional development provided by the employer or an accredited external professional development provider.

Background 
Early Education is serious, meaningful work. The first five years of a child’s life lay the foundation for everything that follows, and our educators play a vital role in shaping children’s emotional, social, and educational development.

Professional development cannot be treated as an “add-on” squeezed in at the end of a long day. For educators to truly grow, they need dedicated time—full days where centres close, just as pupil-free days operate in schools. This gives teams the space to learn together on-site or to access high-quality external training, ensuring they can offer children the best possible start in life.

  • Online industry information sessions for staff which Providers must book new staff into within two weeks of them starting employment to inform them of their rights and how they can claim unpaid wages 
  • A clear process with timelines for staff to claim unpaid wages 

Background 
We know that wage theft is common across the ECEC sector- whether it is staff not being compensated for missing breaks, being classified incorrectly or (possibly the most common) working extra hours without being paid. 

Staff need to be informed about their rights and to have a clear and accessible process to claim money owed to them.  

  • Online industry information sessions for staff which Providers must book new staff into within two weeks of them starting employment. 
  • Half an hour of paid-time at staff meetings in each centre once a year. 

Background 
Every educator wants children to be safe and to receive the highest quality care. That’s why so many in our sector have welcomed the stronger regulation and increased scrutiny over the past year. 

But alongside these changes, we’ve seen a sharp rise in complaints and disciplinary actions. As a result, even dedicated, ethical, and long-standing educators are being swept into complex investigations. Many find themselves navigating a highly legalistic and intimidating system where the stakes couldn’t be higher—not just their job, but  their reputation and their entire career are on the line. 

Educators deserve clear information about their rights, their responsibilities, and where to turn for support when facing allegations.  

Non-contact time should:

  • Be increased beyond the current minimum.
  • Be guaranteed for all educators, not just the responsible person for room planning.
  • Reflect the real workload and compliance requirements placed on all educators.

Background
Educators need more non-contact time, and it must be shared fairly across the room.

Right now, guaranteed non-contact time is limited to the educator responsible for preparation, implementation and/or evaluation of a developmental program. This doesn’t reflect the reality of work requirements of a room. All educators are required to complete observations, documentation, assessments, reflections, and communication with families –  often on top of their time in the room.

Two hours of non-contact time per week is not enough to meet the requirements of curriculum planning, supervision of indoor and outdoor environments, and the delivery of safe and effective pedagogy.

As a result, educators are regularly forced to complete essential work in their own time, stay back unpaid, or rush documentation.

Support our claims here

In 2026, Educators will negotiate their pay and conditions through the Multi Employer Agreement. This is a sector-wide agreement currently covering 555 employers and 50,000 educators.

It’s going to take educators standing together to win the big changes we want.

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