Early childhood education wage rise lands before Christmas

More than 17,000 Goodstart early childhood education and care (ECEC) workers will take home more pay this week as a result of the Albanese Government’s historic 15 per cent wage increase.

ECEC workers at more than 650 Goodstart services across Australia, are among the first to receive an increased wage thanks to the Albanese Government’s $3.6 billion investment in the sector.

Pay rises of 10 per cent above the award rate will start hitting the bank accounts of Goodstart workers this week with a further 5 per cent increase in December 2025.

Since coming to Government, the early learning workforce has grown by more than 30,000 workers, but we need more.

The 15 per cent wage rise is available to up to 200,000 ECEC workers across the country, helping to retain our existing early childhood educators and attract new workers to the sector.

This means a typical ECEC educator who is paid at the award rate will receive a pay rise of at least $103 per week, increasing to at least $155 per week from December 2025.

For a typical early childhood teacher, they’ll receive an additional $166 a week from December this year, increasing to $249 from December of next year.

Eligibility for the Worker Retention Payment is tied to a requirement for ECEC services to limit fee increases, ensuring workers are paid fairly without the costs being passed on to families.

Combined with the Government’s successful Cheaper Child Care changes, this wage increase will help support the availability of early education and care for families and is an important step in charting the course to a truly universal early education system.

Early learning providers can now apply for funding to deliver the pay rise at: education.gov.au/early-childhood/workforce/wages.

Any successful applications received by 30 June 2025 will receive funding backdated to 2 December 2024.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Education Jason Clare:

“Our early educators do some of the most important work in the country, and the wonderful Goodstart team are no exception.

“But early childhood educators are also some of the most underpaid workers in Australia.

“We are changing that, and this initial pay rise will mean an extra $100 in their before tax pay every week from this month.

“It will help to encourage more people to stay in the job they love, and for those who may have recently left the sector, it will help attract them back.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Early Childhood Education and Minister for Youth Anne Aly:

“We’re securing the essential early childhood education workforce that families rely on every day, while keeping out-of-pocket costs low for families.

“Educators and teachers, including those at Goodstart do a wonderful job, educating our littlest learners every day.

“We’re boosting the wages of early childhood education workers, while relieving cost of living pressures on Australian families.

“This is yet another example of what we’re doing to help Australians earn more and keep more of what they earn.”

Quotes attributable to Goodstart Early Learning CEO Dr Ros Baxter:

“Goodstart is proud to be the first large provider to pass the wages boost onto our people. 

“Our new enterprise agreement secures not only this much needed boost, but our ongoing above-award wages as well, and a host of other professional development and leave benefits that lead the sector. 

“With a commitment to children - not making profits - we invite early learning professionals to call us today about joining our team of change makers, creating positive impact in 700 communities right across Australia.

“On behalf of our team and the families who depend upon them, I want to thank the Federal Government for their unwavering commitment to early childhood education and care (ECEC) and to the workforce that delivers it.”