Thousands of teachers rally for higher pay THOUSANDS of teachers decked out in red are filing into a Melbourne stadium to demand higher pay as part of their industrial dispute with the Victorian government. The 24-hour strike action, which is expected to involve as many as 30,000 teachers and school staff, has resulted in the closure of about 170 Victorian schools. Teachers and support staff wearing red T-shirts and carrying banners with slogans including "Quality Teachers, Quality Schools" and "Cut Contracts" say they want the Victorian government to honour its pre-election promise to make Victorian teachers the best paid. Teachers, some of whom are even sporting Australian Education Union (AEU) temporary tattoos, have gathered at Hisense Arena where AEU Victorian branch president Meredith Peace will address them. They will then march to Parliament House. The government puts the number of schools that will not have students at 300 and schools that remain open will have adequate supervision arrangements in place. Education Minister Martin Dixon had called on the union to call off the strike, saying it was disappointing and disruptive to families and businesses. The union is seeking a 4.2 per cent annual pay rise over three years, while the government public sector wages policy is an annual pay rise of 2.5 per cent with any further increases to be offset by productivity gains.