The Education Department said the “majority” of public schools and preschools will operate as normal or with “modified learning programs”  tomorrow when teachers strike to demand better pay and working conditions.

It comes after the South Australian branch of the Australian Education Union (AEU) rejected the state government’s third pay offer on Monday night, with branch president Andrew Gohl saying the new offer was “essentially the same, if not worse, than the last”.

Premier Peter Malinauskas and Treasurer Stephen Mullighan yesterday ruled out offering more money to teachers, saying there was “no point” unless their union was prepared to negotiate.

Teachers will rally outside the Education Department’s Flinders St office at 11.30am tomorrow before marching to Parliament House. It follows a first strike on 1 September which led to school closures across the state.

The latest strike will shut more than 170 schools tomorrow, with the Education Department saying “schools and preschools are notifying parents and carers directly and are available to answer any questions”.

Education minister Blair Boyer said Year 12 exams would not be impacted. Exams at closed schools would still proceed, with about 1000 students expected to sit accounting and physics exams tomorrow.

“I can give a reassurance to those students that those exams will still take place at that school, even if the school is closed,” Boyer said on Tuesday.

“We have put arrangements in place so there is no disruption there and the SACE board has done everything in its power to make sure there won’t be any disruption to the roughly 1000 students that will be undertaking accounting and physics exams on Thursday.”

You might like

Archive

The one-legged guide to ageing well

Archive

Reserve Bank tipped to hold interest rates despite inflation fall

Boyer said parents of students at closed schools should make alternative arrangements for their children.

“My very strong advice to parents if their school is one of the ones that will be closed is you need to make arrangements as per the strike in September,” he said.

You might like

Archive

The one-legged guide to ageing well

Archive

Reserve Bank tipped to hold interest rates despite inflation fall

“If you are unable to make alternative arrangements on Thursday, please start speaking to your school leadership…to see if they can help at those schools that will be closed.

“There will be one or two staff members there to assist if a parent drops off a child because they haven’t realised that the school is closed or because they have forgotten.”

He added he was “honestly shocked” that the AEU decided to go ahead with the strike after putting in an offer to teachers on Monday afternoon worth about $1.4 billion.

“Particularly given the comments the union had made around there needing to be an improved offer – this is definitely an improved offer,” Boyer said.

“I am disappointed they didn’t stick to their word on that and I expected that once we communicated that offer to them… that the strike would be called off. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

“We are putting plans in place to make sure that the disruption to families and students is as limited as we can possibly make it.”

AEU South Australian branch president Andrew Gohl today told InDaily that there had been no productive discussions or negotiations between the union and the government since Monday evening.

“I’ve said to the Premier that we remain open to discussions,” said Gohl, who at the September protest promised to be a “pain in the butt” for Premier Peter Malinauskas.

“I suggest that today might be a bridge too far in terms of pulling off action, but our commitment is to be there and continue negotiating because we’ve got to get to an endpoint here – there’s an urgency for us.

“We’ve been quite patient with the government, but there is an urgency in that this situation is not going to get any better – it’s getting worse.”

He said the AEU demanded an 8.64 per cent raise for teachers – “the government’s own figures on the cost of living”.

“At the moment, the national midpoint is $140,000 a year for a top-of-the-range teacher and this offer puts us below the national midpoint,” Gohl said.

“We’re currently bottom nationally. This offer will probably keep us on the bottom.

“We’re behind the eight ball and I think the difficulty is that there’s been successive governments…who’ve underinvested in education. Sure, they do upgrades to buildings, but they haven’t addressed the workforce needs for a long, long, long time.”

When asked whether he was concerned that the government might delay putting in another offer until the school year ends, Gohl said “who wants this problem going into next year as well?”

“Education has been the poor cousin to every other budget area for decades,” he said.

“We’ve sat by and watched while every other portfolio area have had massive increases in funding and education has simply languished.

“We know there are other budget pressures, but governments make choices – they make choices around merging universities, they make choices around funding submarines for billions of dollars.

“Now is the time to choose to reinvigorate public education and recognise educators for what they’re worth.”

The full list of schools closing tomorrow (9/11/23) is below:

• Aberfoyle Hub Primary School
• Aberfoyle Park High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Adelaide Botanic High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Adelaide High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Alberton Preschool
• Alberton Primary School
• Aldinga Payinthi College (including disability unit)
• Aldinga Payinthi College Preschool
• Allenby Gardens Child Parent Centre
• Allenby Gardens Primary School
• Athelstone School
• Auslan Early Learning Program
• Australian Science & Mathematics School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Avenues College – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Avenues College Children’s Centre
• Bains Road Preschool
• Banksia Park International HS – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Birdwood Primary School
• Blackwood Primary School
• Blakeview Primary School
• Brentwood Drive Kindergarten
• Brighton Primary School
• Brinkworth Preschool Centre
• Brinkworth Primary School
• Burton Park Preschool
• Carlton Preschool
• Ceduna Area School – Open for Yr 12 exams and class camp is going ahead as planned
• Christie Downs Primary School
• Christies Beach Primary School
• Cobdogla Primary School
• Coorara Primary School
• Craigburn Primary School
• Crystal Brook Kindergarten
• Crystal Brook Primary School
• East Adelaide School
• Eastern Fleurieu Langhorne Creek Campus
• Eastern Fleurieu Milang Playcentre
• Eastern Fleurieu Strath R-6 Campus
• Eden Hills Primary School
• Elizabeth North Preschool
• Elizabeth North Primary School
• Elizabeth Park Child Parent Centre
• Elizabeth Park Primary School
• Enfield Primary School
• Errington Special Education Centre
• Findon High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Fisk Street Primary School
• Flinders Children’s Centre
• Forbes Primary School
• Freeling Preschool
• Freeling Primary School
• Gilles Street Primary School
• Gladstone High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Glen Osmond Primary School
• Glenunga International High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Goolwa Primary School
• Gordon Education Centre
• Grant High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Greenock Primary School
• Hackham West School
• Hahndorf Preschool
• Hallett Cove East Primary School
• Hallett Cove School- Open for exams and international study tour.
• Hallett Cove South Primary School
• Hamilton Secondary College – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Happy Valley Primary School
• Henley Beach Primary School
• Highbury Primary School
• Highgate School
• Huntfield Heights Better Behaviour Centre
• Indulkana Anangu School
• Indulkana Child Parent Centre
• John Pirie Secondary School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Karrendi Primary School
• Klemzig Kindergarten
• Klemzig Primary School
• Koolunga Primary School
• Lake Windemere B-6 Children’s Centre
• Lameroo Regional Community School – No exams scheduled
• Laura Preschool Centre
• Laura Primary School
• Leigh Creek Area School – No exams scheduled
• Lobethal Primary School
• Madison Park Kindergarten
• Madison Park School
• Magill School
• Margaret Lohmeyer Kindergarten
• Marryatville High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Mid North Education Centre
• Mitcham Girls High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Mitcham Primary School
• Monash Preschool
• Monash Primary and Preschool
• Mount Gambier High School – No exams scheduled
• Mount Pleasant Primary School
• Mundulla Primary School
• Nailsworth Primary School
• Napperby Primary School (including Preschool)
• Neta Kranz Children’s Centre
• Ngura Yadurirn Children & Family Ctr
• Noarlunga Downs Preschool
• Noarlunga Downs Primary School
• Norrie Stuart Childhood Servs Ctr
• North Adelaide Primary School
• Northfield Preschool
• Norwood International High School – Open for exams and international study tour
• Nuriootpa Primary School
• Old Noarlunga Primary School
• Paradise Kindergarten
• Parafield Gardens High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Parks Children’s Centre
• Pennington Children’s Centre
• Pimpala Primary School
• Pooraka Primary School
• Port Augusta Children’s Centre
• Port Augusta West Primary School
• Port Elliot Primary School
• Port Lincoln Junior Primary School
• Port Pirie West Primary School
• Prospect North Primary School
• Quorn Area School – No exams scheduled
• Renmark High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Reynella East College – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Reynella Primary School
• Risdon Park Primary School
• Riverdale Primary School – Disability Unit – Open
• Riverland Special School
• Roma Mitchell Secondary College – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Rose Park Primary School
• Roseworthy Primary School
• Roxby Downs Area School – No exams scheduled
• Salisbury Park Kindergarten
• Salisbury Park Primary School
• Sandy Creek Primary School
• Seacliff Primary School
• Sheidow Park Primary School
• Solomontown Primary School
• South Port Primary School
• Springbank Secondary College – No exams scheduled
• St Agnes Preschool
• St Leonards Primary School
• Stirling East Kindergarten
• Stirling North Childhood Services Ct
• Stirling North Primary School
• Stradbroke School
• Streaky Bay Area School – Open for Y 12 exams
• Sturt Street Community School
• Surrey Downs Primary School
• Taikurrendi Children and Family Cent
• Tailem Bend Primary School
• The Heights Preschool
• The Pines School – Intensive English Language Centre Open
• Torrensville Preschool Centre
• Trinity Gardens School
• Unley High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Uraidla Primary School
• Urrbrae Agricultural High School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Vale Park Primary School
• Walkerville Primary School
• Wallaroo Mines Primary School
• Wandana Child Parent Centre
• Wandana Primary School
• West Beach Primary School
• West Lakes Shore Kindergarten
• West Lakes Shore School
• Whyalla Secondary College – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Whyalla Stuart Primary School R-6
• Willunga Preschool
• Wirreanda Secondary School – Open for Yr 12 exams
• Woodcroft Primary School – Class camp is going ahead as planned
• Woodend Primary School
• Woodside Primary School
• Woodville Better Behaviour Centre
• Woomera Area School – No exams scheduled