On this page (5 sections)
The short answer
Queensland state school teachers got two rises in September 2026. The QIRC granted a 3% interim rise on agreement rates from 7 September. Separately, award rates rose 4.75% from 1 September. You're paid whichever is higher, so most classroom teachers get 4.75%: a graduate goes from $86,068 to $90,164. Coaches, HATs, Lead Teachers and leaders get the 3%.
- The 3% was paid in the fortnight ending 4 October 2026.
- The 4.75% is due in the fortnight ending 18 October 2026, with back pay to 1 September.
- Neither is the final deal: the QIRC is still arbitrating a new agreement.
- Supply teachers rise to $515.75 a day.
What happened
Queensland's state school teachers have had no new agreement since the State School Teachers' Certified Agreement 2022 reached its nominal expiry on 30 June 2025. After bargaining broke down, the dispute went to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC) for arbitration. A Full Bench will set the new terms.
While that case runs, the QIRC Full Bench granted a 3% interim increase on CA2022 rates, operative from 7 September 2026. At almost the same time, the State Wage Case 2026 raised Queensland award rates by 4.75% from 1 September 2026. Teachers are paid the higher of the two, which is why different classifications got different rises.
Work out your pay rise and back pay
⚙Your details
New pay rates
Default: the new rates' operative date, 1 September 2026.
When the back pay lands. Default: six weeks from today. New rates apply from the following pay.
E.g. a sign-on or cost-of-living payment in the agreement (gross).
Back pay owed (before tax)
$1,193
New salary
$90,164
+4.8% on $86,068
Rise per fortnight
$158
$107 after tax
Tax on back pay
$382
32% of the lump
Back pay in hand
$811
What this means
From 1 September 2026 you should have been paid $158 more each fortnight. Because the new rates weren't paid yet, the difference builds up and arrives as one back payment: about $1,193 before tax. After that, your fortnightly take-home goes from $2,616 to $2,723.
Payroll taxes back pay at your marginal rate rather than spreading it, so roughly 32% comes off. That's your actual tax on the money: it doesn't push the rest of your salary into a higher bracket. These are the latest rates already in force: if they are on your payslip, nothing is owed. This shows what you're owed if payroll was late applying them.
Estimate only. Back pay = (new − old) fortnightly pay × fortnights between the two dates, using the pay column in force at the start of each fortnight. Tax uses the ATO marginal-rate method on your annual salary for 2026–27; back pay for an earlier financial year over $1,200 may be taxed differently and is reported as a lump sum E. Old rates: 1 September 2025 column; Department of Education State School Teachers' Certified Agreement 2022, verified 16 October 2026.
Background: from strikes to arbitration
Sources: QTU Queensland Teachers' Journal, Qld Government ministerial statement (27 Oct 2025), QTU salary schedule (1 Oct 2026).
What changes for your pay
From the Department of Education salary schedule (updated 1 Sep 2026) and the QTU's 1 Oct 2026 schedule. The QTU rounds a few figures differently; we use the Department's.
Take-home pay before and after, 2026–27 rates (no HELP debt)
- Graduate: $86,068 → $90,164
- $2,616 → $2,723 a fortnight
- Band 3 Step 4: $113,957 → $119,357
- $3,345 → $3,486 a fortnight
- Highly Accomplished Teacher: $130,769 → $134,694
- $3,785 → $3,887 a fortnight
2026–27 income tax after LITO plus 2% Medicare, from our tax engine. All three salaries are in the 30% bracket (32c in the dollar with Medicare).
The gap between the old and new graduate rate is about $158 a fortnight before tax; at Band 3 Step 4 it's about $208. Back pay for the award rise runs from 1 September 2026. If your payroll applied the 3% interim first, part of that difference may already have reached you in the 4 October pay. Check both payslips, and use the back pay calculator to estimate what's owed.
Free calculator
Teacher back pay calculator
Choose Queensland, your band and step, and the date the rise applies from. See the gross amount and what you keep after tax.
Check my back payLeaders got the 3% interim rise: Heads of Department now earn $145,320 to $148,003 and Deputy Principals $161,746 to $164,605. Supply teachers are paid Band 3 Step 1 plus a 25% loading: $515.75 a day ($103.15 an hour) from 1 September 2026, up from $492.38.
What happens next and dates to watch
Watch for
- Fortnight ending 18 October 2026: the 4.75% award rise and back pay should be processed.
- The arbitration hearing and decision. No dates were set when we checked; a decision is expected late 2026 or in 2027.
- The final rates. The QTU's claim is reported as 3% + 7% + 7% + 7% (24%); we haven't confirmed the final submitted figures. The QIRC decides the actual figures, so don't plan around the claim.
- Catholic diocesan schools (separate): employers have reportedly linked back pay to a yes vote by 31 October 2026.
Whether the final decision is back-dated, and to when, is up to the Full Bench. Until it rules, the September 2026 rates are the ones to budget on. For the full scale and every rise since 2022, see the Queensland pay rise page and the national pay rise tracker.
Frequently asked questions
Did Queensland teachers get a pay rise in 2026?
Why did some QLD teachers get 4.75% and others 3%?
What is a graduate teacher paid in Queensland now?
Is the 3% the final Queensland teacher pay deal?
When will the QIRC decide Queensland teacher pay?
Sources we checked · last verified 2026-10-17
- 1.QTU: Salaries under CA2022
- 2.QTU: Updated salary schedule flyer (1 Oct 2026, PDF)
- 3.Qld Department of Education: Salary schedule (updated 1 Sep 2026)
- 4.QTU: EB referred to arbitration (QTJ Vol 131 No 1)
- 5.QTU: Pathway to arbitration and QTU submissions (QTJ Vol 131 No 4)
- 6.Queensland Government ministerial statement (27 Oct 2025)
- 7.IEU-QNT: Bargaining Loop #4 (23 Apr 2026)
Work out your pay rise and back pay
CalculateAbout this page
Written and fact-checked by the TeacherPay AU Editorial Team against the enterprise agreements, awards and official pages listed in the sources. It is general information, not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it, usually within a day. See our editorial policy and how we calculate.