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February 3, 2026 — 5:00am
As West Australian children head off to school for 2026, the new year has sparked fresh calls for equal access to technology – and not just for students.
Public schools are not required to provide laptops or tablets for teachers to use, something the State School Teachers’ Union WA has fought to change during recent enterprise bargaining rounds.
While some schools do ensure teachers have their own devices, others do not and staff can instead make use of a salary sacrifice program which lets them purchase their own.
A Department of Education spokesperson said the Notebooks for Teachers program was not compulsory, and that teachers were also not required to bring their own device.
The spokesperson said public schools were funded through their annual budget to provide computers as required for their staff.
“Schools always work to ensure staff have the devices required to perform their duties,” they said.
They did not respond to a question about whether being provided access to devices should be mandated in the next round of bargaining.
Union president Matt Jarman said while teachers may not be required to have their own devices, it was a necessity of the job.
He said the fact there was “no consistency” was creating a divide between schools that could be resolved with a statewide policy.
“The truth is we have been trying to get the Department of Education to mandate schools providing devices, be it laptops or tablets, and to recognise that they are a necessary tool of the trade,” Jarman said.
“The whole situation is a mess, quite frankly, and it adds to the workload burden teachers are already facing.
“Teachers are also expected to buy subscriptions to certain services or the software required which then creates additional costs.”
Jarman said principals and school leaders were also not provided with a mobile phone, despite being expected to always be on call.
In the union’s 2025 State of Schools survey, more than 30 per cent of respondents said they were expected to use their own devices to manage workplace social media channels, and 31 per cent cited technical issues and requirements as adding to their workload.
One teacher commented: “Having to provide my own laptop to do my job is absolutely disgusting. We should be provided with the required equipment to do our roles. I don’t know any other profession that requires this of you.”
“I have to pay the department to loan a laptop so I can do the work expected in my own time. Basically, I’m paying the department to do overtime,” another responder wrote.
A third said: “All teachers should be given – not leased, given – a laptop.”
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