Teacher salaries and benefits in Queensland are based on the current
awards and
agreements for public sector employees.
How much can I earn as a teacher?
Teacher salaries are determined by years of service, qualifications and prior teaching and/or industry experience.
For a permanent or temporary beginning teacher with a four year degree, the base salary in Queensland state schools is approximately $70,000 per year.
Casual teachers in Queensland state schools are paid approximately $76 per hour.
As you progress along your career path, the following approximate base salaries apply:
- Senior teachers: $97,297
- Experienced senior teachers: $101,000
- Heads of Curriculum: $106,431
- Heads of Department: $111,540
- Principals: $112,656
- Executive Principals, the leaders of our largest and most complex schools, are paid a base salary of approximately $170,428 per year.
For more details, download the
salary classification levels (XLS, 186KB). On completion of a four year degree, beginning teachers start on Band 2. Each step on the pay scale is equivalent to a full year of teaching service.
Leave entitlements and benefits
The department provides state school teachers with a wide variety of leave entitlements. This ensures teachers maintain a healthy balance between their professional and personal lives.
The major types of leave available include:
- sick leave
- long service leave of 1.3 weeks for each year of continuous service, which can be accessed after seven years
- paid parental leave, including maternity, paternity, surrogacy and adoption leave
- leave for study and examination purposes
- special leave for absences of specific purposes, such as compassionate grounds, sporting competitions or jury duty
- unpaid extended special leave of three years, or seven years for family responsibility reasons.
Other rewards and benefits include:
Check out our range of
scholarships and grants on offer to help support your teaching journey.