Department of Education: Flexible Working Hours Agreement, meal allowances, your pay rise and more
14 April 2026
Your Public Service Association (PSA) Delegates and industrial staff continue to advocate strongly on your behalf across the Education Support Staff (ESS) areas of the Department of Education (DoE). Below is an update on key industrial and workplace issues.
Current advocacy
- Ongoing enforcement of Award entitlements, Government Sector Employment Act (GSE Act), including negotiation for a new Flexible Working Hours Agreement.
- Continued pressure on DoE to reduce contractor reliance and comply with the NSW Government’s Core Work policy and 15 per cent reduction in Public Sector Senior Executive (PSSE)
- Strong advocacy on WHS, workload, staff wellbeing
Update on major industrial issues
- Flexible Working Hours Agreement negotiations
- Workforce data, recruitment and contractor use
- Meal allowance: Clause 29 not being applied
- School infrastructure and asset management works: PSA secures new consultation
- Work Health and Safety
- Staff wellbeing: PMES Results
- Early Learning Commission
- Your upcoming pay rises and cost of living adjustment
Flexible Working Hours Agreement negotiations
In November 2025 the Department and the PSA commenced negotiations for a new Flexible Working Hours Agreement with the current agreement due to expire. We established terms of reference and a regular cadence of meetings. The PSA has pushed to ensure that the status quo remain in place until a new agreement is finalised which has been agreed. Delegate representatives from across the ESS workforce covered by the agreement have been actively involved in meetings, bringing forward issues, concerns, and improvements on behalf of members.
The PSA has highlighted several priorities, including clearer overtime provisions informed by other PSA Award wins, stronger safeguards to avoid forfeiture of hours, appropriate bandwidths for different employee cohorts, and greater clarity in drafting, to limit the capacity of managers to ‘standardise hours’ based on ‘operational requirements’ without due regard for employee flexibility.
Additional concerns have been raised for the unique circumstances of School Psychologists and Student Support Officers covered by the Agreement. These include access to flexible start and finish times within bandwidth, taking breaks and capacity to accrue flex time in order to take leave during the school vacation periods when students are not at school. The PSA has also advocated that the electronic flex sheets be amended to include an adjustment code for Time in Lieu (TIL) and the recording of overtime hours worked. This would support employee choice for payment of overtime or accrual of TIL.
Finally, the PSA has identified operational and systemic issues that currently hinder accurate recording of hours in a single system and limit employee access to proper remuneration for work performed.
Workforce Data, Recruitment & Contractor Use
The PSA continues to monitor:
- FTE data – both ongoing and temporary roles
- High contingent labour reliance (623 contractors as at August 2025)
- Low mobility placement of impacted employees
- External recruitment during restructuring
These concerns were raised directly with the then acting Education Minister on 19 November 2025.
Data reporting and monitoring remains a standing agenda item at the ESS Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) meeting. Reduced numbers of contingent labour were reported via the recent JCC, in March 2026.
Meal Allowance – Clause 29
The PSA has raised concerns and is reviewing the Department’s recent “improved guidance” on staff accessing allowances after members who regularly travel over 100 kms in one day as part of the inherent requirements of their role contacted the union. They have been advised they cannot claim a meal allowance for these journeys.
The Crown Employees (Public Service Conditions of Employment) reviewed Award 2009 states:
“A staff member… shall be paid the appropriate rate of allowance… [for] lunch when required to travel a total distance on the day of at least 100 kilometres.”
The DoE has not identified any Award provisions that support a “regular travel” exclusion and claims that the guidance to staff is a reminder of longstanding practice aligned with recent advice from Public Sector Industrial Relations (PSIR).
The PSA has been pursuing this issue on behalf of members including at the JCC. The union is preparing to formally challenge the department position, to assist the PSA in preparing for industrial disputation, members are encouraged to contact the MSC and provide copies of your declined claims quoting C10011128.
School Infrastructure and Asset Management Works – PSA Secures New Consultation
After the disappearance of the minor works budget line, the PSA raised concerns about safety, asset deterioration, and inequity between schools. Following PSA escalation through the JCC meeting, the Director of Schools Infrastructure has met with PSA industrial staff and delegates and agreed to do the following:
- Provide regular updates on the $5m gas heater replacement program.
- Engage PSA on FY26–27 minor works planning.
- Include a General Assistant delegate in consultations.
- Share annual asbestos removal schedules.
- Hold quarterly consultative meetings with PSA.
This is a significant step toward restoring transparency of spending and ensuring essential safety works proceed.
Workplace Health and Safety
The PSA meets for consultation regularly with the Health, Safety and Staff Wellbeing (HSSW) directorate. The PSA has provided feedback on Incident reporting, Psychosocial safety, Emergency management procedures, the Staff Wellbeing Plan and Return to Work processes for injured workers. We continue to push for meaningful action on burnout, workload, and safety. PSA requested a list of current Health Safety Representatives (HSRs) across NSW. PSA is committed to identifying more HSRs and the PSA is now an approved provider of the 5-day HSR training.
PSA recent JCC follow up on office presence, advocating that improved communication should go to staff on Emergency Evacuation procedures, Fire Wardens and First Aid information and access in offices, especially at the main hubs of 105P Parramatta and Eveleigh. We are pleased to see action and progress on this over the past month and will continue to monitor it in consultation with members.
In response to the PSA raising concerns, the HSSW directorate released updated First aid and Emergency management procedures to help schools and Education Support Staff offices simplify planning and strengthen compliance with WHS requirements. This was notified to all staff via Staff Noticeboard on 9 March. In addition, information specific to 105 Phillip Street safety and first aid information was sent to all ESS on 2 March 2026. Members have tested and confirmed the first aid and evacuation contact numbers and reported better placed clearer signage and improved communication on these important matters.
Staff wellbeing – PMES results
The 2024 results showed: 57–58 per cent of staff reported burnout and only 46 per cent believed action would be taken. 2025 results show steep declines in staff wellbeing, employee voice, and Professional Learning and Development. The PSA is demanding a stronger departmental response across all ESS Directorates and JCC report back to the PSA about what each functional area is doing to address the worst concerns.
Early Learning Commission (ELC)
Following last year’s parliamentary enquiry into NSW child-care services’ regulation, the government created an independent Early Learning Commission (ELC). The PSA has been in close consultation with members and with the new commissioner to ensure a smooth transition from the department of Education ECEC RA directorate to the ELC. The PSA ensured that all roles were maintained in the lift and shift; and quarterly JCC meetings have been established with the new Commission. PSA industrial staff and delegates have had several meetings with the ELC executive for consultation and advocacy on: workload management, reduction in Assessment & Rating allocations, attention to improving staff wellbeing and improved communication with staff about clear evidence-based work priorities. Industrial staff attended the SON conference at Parramatta to show support for members and to introduce ourselves as the union to a room of 300+ staff.
The PSA/ELC JCC meeting with the Commissioner on 19 March 2026 has been followed by decisive action(s):
- Recruitment and onboarding to fill roles and reduce workload
- Reduced A&R visits allocation announced last week
- Redistribution of work types by improved triage
- Communications to staff reiterating access to leave entitlements
- Rec leave reinstatement for Western and Central Division based roles
- Cultural review
- An independent review of workflow
PSA will continue to be engaged in close consultation on matters of concern to our ELC members.
Your pay rises
The PSA continues to fight for your pay rises. At the last round of pay rise negotiations, the PSA negotiated a three-year pay deal for all public sector workers covered by the Salaries Award as follows:
Three-year Salaries Award:
- 4 per cent pay rise + 0.5 per cent super (2024–25)
- 3 per cent + 0.5 per cent super (2025–26)
- 3 per cent (2026–27)
The PSA also ensured a cost-of-living adjustment: for an additional payment of $1000 if CPI rises above 4 per cent in the March quarter (reported on 29 April).
The union will be meeting with senior government officials over the coming weeks about the cost-of-living adjustment and will update members on discussions as they progress.
Delegates are the backbone of our union. We know you met your elected delegates at last week’s Town Hall and we thank our dedicated elected and workplace ESS delegates for your ongoing work.