A profile of Australia’s teachers

Teachers are the backbone of our education system

The successful education of Australia’s children and young people relies on the ongoing dedication and expertise of our teacher workforce.

In 2023 there were 553,032 registered teachers in Australia. Of the total, 81% make up the Teacher Workforce – this comprises teachers and leaders deployed in schools and early childhood settings and those working as casual/relief teachers. The remaining 19% of registered teachers were non-deployed (for example, on extended leave, between contracts, or working in a different field).

1 Where do teachers and leaders work?

Australia’s school-deployed workforce (that is, teachers and leaders working in schools on short, long or permanent contracts, excluding casual/relief teachers) are spread across diverse locations, and between different sectors and school types. Most (71%) teachers and leaders work in major cities, and most (64%) work in the government sector, with a relatively equal distribution between primary and secondary schools.¹

Figure 1a. Regionality of school-deployed teacher workforce, 2023

Figure 1b. Sector and school type of school-deployed teacher workforce, 2023

For more information on the distribution of the teacher workforce:

2 Characteristics of the teacher workforce

The teacher workforce ranges from those aged in their 20s, newly embarking on their career, up to those in their 60s and older who bring years of life experience to their roles. In 2023, 17% of teachers and leaders were approaching retirement (aged 60+), and around half (51%) were aged between 30 and 49 years. The age profile of the teacher workforce has remained relatively stable since 2019.

Figure 2. Age of the teacher workforce, 2023

The majority of teachers and leaders are women, though the gender imbalance is not the same across all groups – the proportion of women is lower in secondary than primary schools, for both classroom teachers and leaders.

Table 1. Gender of teacher workforce subgroups, 2023

Almost 1 in 5 (18%) of the teacher workforce was born overseas, and a small proportion of the teacher workforce (6%) obtained their initial teacher education degree overseas.

The teacher workforce is highly experienced. In 2023, 66% of the teacher workforce had at least 10 years’ experience, with early career teachers (those in their first five years of teaching) comprising 20% of the teacher workforce.

Figure 3. Experience of the teacher workforce, 2023

Highlighting the wealth of knowledge present in leadership positions, almost a third (28%) of senior leaders (principals and deputy principals) had 30+ years of experience in the profession, and 20% of middle leaders had 30+ years’ experience.

3 Most of the teacher workforce are in stable employment

The majority (69%) of the teacher workforce were employed on ongoing contracts in 2023, with only 15% on fixed-term contracts and 16% on casual/relief contracts.

Among classroom teachers deployed in schools, 76% were employed on ongoing contracts, with school leaders even more likely to be employed in an ongoing capacity (86-92%). In contrast, a lower proportion (48%) of early career teachers were employed on ongoing contracts. The majority of teachers and leaders were contracted to work full-time hours, with higher rates of part-time hours taken by those in early childhood settings and those working on a casual/relief basis.

Figure 4. Teacher workforce contract types, 2023

Table 2. Full-time contracts of teacher workforce subgroups, 2023