This bulletin contains an industrial update for PSA School Psychologist members regarding the Department’s announcement of an agreement with teachers to award a substantial pay-rise to School Counsellors from the first pay period following 9 October 2023. This has created a significant salary disparity between School Counsellors (SC) and School Psychologists (SP).

The PSA reiterates that the seriousness of the Department’s departure from pay parity is not lost on us. The decision not to bargain with the your union concurrently when forging the agreement with the teachers, represents a failure to apply due diligence to consider the unacceptable consequence of a two-tiered system of employment, in which two groups of workers, who perform the same work for the same employer, are paid dramatically different salaries.

PSA advocacy for a School Psychologist pay rise

Over several years, the PSA has worked hard to successfully secure your pay rises. We have used all available dispute mechanisms to ensure your pay rises and backpay, year on year, to maintain salary parity with School Counsellors.

This year we successfully arbitrated the Crown Employees (School Psychologists – Department of Education) Salaries Award 2022 (the Psychologists’ Award), locking in salary certainty and salary progression. Your Delegates were witnesses in these proceedings. Therefore, it was particularly infuriating, so soon after making the Psychologist’s’ Award, to hear the Department’s announcement about teaching service pay rises. This decision which represents a departure from the historical pay parity that has existed between School Psychologists and School Counsellors since the School Psychologist role has existed.

After the announcement, PSA industrial staff obtained the relevant information about the teachers’ agreement and sought legal advice concerning our options.  Following this, PSA industrial and legal staff met with your PSA School Psychologist Delegates to discuss what actions the PSA plans to take.  In this meeting we agreed that the Association will write to the Secretary to seek consent for an award variation, that reflects the pay rises awarded to teachers.  Considering a variation by consent would be the simplest way to ensure salary parity.

Further, the Association has advised the NSW Government of our position and the affront that the unequal pay rise decision represents to School Psychologists, who do the same role as School Counsellors. The PSA sought an immediate meeting with the Deputy Premier/Education Minister, who has been on leave, but agreed to meet early in Term 4.

On 28 September 2023, the Association formally wrote to the Secretary, NSW Department of Education, Murat Dizdar, seeking the department’s consent to a variation to the School Psychologist’s Award, to provide School Psychologists with fair and reasonable salaries, considering the high quality and vital services School Psychologists provide the State and the increased complexities and demands of the role. The Association also sought the one-year variation mirroring the Teachers award variation, to maintain the historical salary parity with School Counsellors. The formal correspondence included an attached proposed amended Award.

On 5 October 2023, the Secretary responded that due to the new School Counsellor salary structure under a varied Teachers Award, the Department is seeking revised bargaining parameters for the School Psychologists’ Award. However pending that, the Department did not agree to the Association’s proposal to apply for a one-year variation of the Psychologists’ Award by consent at this time.

The PSA has notified the Department that we are in dispute concerning your pay

Due to its failure to maintain pay parity between School Psychologists and School Counsellors, the PSA has notified the Department that we are in dispute.

On 9 October 2023, the Association filed a s130 dispute in the Industrial Relations Commission concerning the Department’s failure to maintain salary parity between School Psychologists and School Counsellors and the failure to seek concurrent bargaining parameters when they made the agreement with the teachers. The matter has been listed for compulsory conference before the commission on 25 October 2023.

Seeking the assistance of the Commission will ensure the accountability of the parties and that the matter progresses in a timely manner, noting the date of commencement for the School Counsellors pay rises from the first pay period after 9 October 2023.

The PSA will provide further updates as the matter progresses.