A Labor government has vowed to take action on low salaries and large workloads in a bid to stop teachers from throwing in the towel.
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Opposition leader Chris Minns on Thursday announced he would work with the NSW Teachers Federation to address the causes of the teacher shortage crisis if they win the state election in March.
"Labor has already committed to scrapping the Perrottet government's wages cap," Mr Minns said.
"If we are elected in March, Labor will also instruct the Department of Education to immediately begin negotiations with the union.
"We expect a full bargaining period with a view to reaching a comprehensive agreement to reduce workloads and make salaries more competitive while protecting the NSW budget."
The election promise comes as the Liberal government prepares to lock in a three-year wage increase for teachers at 2.53 per cent in the Industrial Relations Commission on Wednesday.
Union officials have demanded a better offer, saying it was well below the rate of inflation of about 6 per cent, with further strike action likely if they can't reach an agreement.
Meantime, union president Angelo Gavrielatos welcomed Labor's pledge to improve pay and conditions for teachers.
"Labor's commitment to scrap the salary cap and engage in genuine negotiations to lift salaries and reduce workloads shows a recognition of the true causes of the teacher shortages and what is needed to stop them," he said.
The government this week released details of a plan that could see at least 10 per cent of teachers get a pay increase, an announcement the union described as "half-baked".
"Its plan to lift the salary of an unknown number of teachers is so half-baked it can't say who would get more or how much they would be paid."
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