8 September 2025
AEU secures major victory: Hundreds of temporary education jobs saved
Government backs down on savage staffing cuts following sustained union pressure
The Australian Education Union ACT Branch has secured a major victory for ACT public school staff, with Education Minister Yvette Berry providing written commitments that will save hundreds of temporary teaching and support jobs across the territory.
Following the AEU’s concerted pressure against proposed cuts that could have slashed up to 720 jobs from ACT schools, Minister Berry has committed that no school will be required to reduce staff below 2025 levels for the 2026 school year.
AEU ACT Branch President Angela Burroughs said the union’s actions had forced the government to abandon its plan to achieve budget savings by cutting temporary staff positions.
“Just three days ago, we warned that ACT Labor’s budget mismanagement was putting 470 teachers or 720 school assistants on the chopping block. Today, we have secured written guarantees that protect these vital education jobs,” Ms Burroughs said.
“The Minister’s commitments mean that temporary staff identified as surplus will be offered alternative positions at their current classification, either in schools experiencing staffing pressures or in roles supporting system priorities.”
Key victories secured by the AEU include:
The Minister has committed in writing that no school will be subjected to requirements to reduce staff below 2025 levels, all staffing changes will be achieved through natural attrition and redeployment, temporary staff deemed surplus will be offered alternative engagements at their current classification, and any staffing “debt” accrued by schools will be forgiven with no requirement to pay back overstaffing costs.
“This is what happens when educators stand together and fight for our schools. The government has been forced to acknowledge that you cannot run quality public education on the cheap,” Ms Burroughs said.
The union’s campaign highlighted the absurdity of a situation where 84% of ACT schools were over budget, with some operating on just four-and-a-half days due to staff shortages, yet still facing demands for further cuts.
“Principals were being put in an impossible position – scapegoated for budget failures that were clearly systemic management issues. Our campaign has exposed this for what it was – a broken budget system that was threatening educational quality.”
While welcoming the Minister’s commitments, the AEU emphasised that the underlying problem of systemic underfunding remains unresolved. The union has secured agreement for an urgent independent review of school resourcing to provide advice on ACT public school funding allocations.
“These commitments avert the immediate crisis, but we cannot accept that 84% of our schools are operating over budget. The independent review must address the structural issues that created this mess in the first place,” Ms Burroughs said.
The AEU’s September Branch Council has endorsed a continued public campaign for improved school resourcing, ongoing monitoring of any attempts to implement staff-cutting measures, and active engagement with the upcoming independent review process.
“Every student deserves properly resourced schools with adequate staffing. Today’s victory shows what we can achieve when we stand up for public education, but our fight for fair funding continues.”
Media contact: Angela Burroughs, ph. 6272 7900, aeuact@aeuact.org.au