Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women's Issues) Share this | Hansard source

against the federal government’s Work Choices legislation, they call upon their employers—the state Labor governments—to improve their pay and their conditions.

The Howard government believe that better performing teachers should receive higher pay. We believe that rewards should be given to teachers who achieve measured improvements in student achievements. Currently, teachers are generally paid according to the number of years in the job, so it is in accordance with the years that they have been serving time as a teacher; it has nothing to do with student achievement.

Does this have consequences? Yes, it does. A principal in a primary school in the member for Jagajaga’s electorate, Bellfield primary, made radical improvements over a number of years to student achievements in literacy and numeracy. He did this by making teachers accountable for student outcomes. He was paid not one cent more than the timeservers, so the consequence is that he has moved out of the public education system. This is the consequence of state Labor governments failing to appropriately recognise the role that teachers play.

I would suggest that the state Labor governments link teacher pay to performance so that student outcomes are taken into account. This would mean better standards in all of our schools. The trouble is that state Labor governments are unable to reward high-performing teachers. They are unable to link pay to student achievement because they are captive to the teachers unions, who put their own interests above the welfare of their students.

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