Victorian teachers and education staff are being asked to vote on a new pay offer which could avert a third statewide strike and end a protracted pay dispute.An extraordinary Australian Education Union (AEU) council meeting was held this evening to discuss the Victorian government's latest pay offer to the state's public school teachers and education staff.The new deal maintains the previous 28 to 32 per cent pay rise depending on an educator's role but adds in a $2,000 lump-sum payment for signing the agreement, a limit on the number of face-to-face teaching hours and a one-hour reduction in the time spent attending meetings.There would also be a 1 per cent annual lump-sum payment for teachers, learning specialists, assistant principals and education support employees who had reached the top of their pay scale.The offer comes ahead of another planned statewide 24-hour strike on Wednesday, August 19.The council meeting has resolved to put the offer to a vote of all union members, with the ballot opening tonight and running until August 17, two days before the planned strike.If a majority of union members accept the government's offer, the strike will be called off.The offer comes a day after Premier Ben Carroll promised Victoria would increase funding to state schools in accordance with its obligations under the former Gonski plan.The government and union said signing the full funding agreement with the federal government would mean Victoria's schools were no longer the lowest-funded in Australia.The union has not said whether it recommended its members accept the deal.The last time the AEU recommended its members accept a government pay offer, it was voted down by 58 per cent of teachers and education staff who were concerned about workloads and school funding.The latest government offer comes a little more than a week out from another planned 24-hour statewide teacher strike. (Supplied: Emily Pinney Brown)But earlier today, AEU Victorian branch president Justin Mullaly said the new offer was a significant step towards recognising and rewarding experienced teachers while achieving sought-after funding improvements for schools."It is a significant offer that has been built upon over a period of time," he said.However, he could not guarantee that teachers and education staff would accept it."Our union is a proudly democratic union. Members get to have a say about their terms and conditions."Justin Mullaly says the deal builds on previous offers made by the state government. (ABC News)Gabrielle Williams was sworn in as the new education minister in Mr Carroll's cabinet.She said she spoke to Mr Mullaly over the phone on the day she was appointed to the ministry and met face-to-face with the union the next day.She said getting the $5 billion agreement across the line remained her first priority in the new portfolio."We, of course, hope that our teachers and education support staff will have a close look at this offer and understand that we come to this in good faith and wanting to genuinely ensure that we respect the incredibly important work that they do," she said."We believe it's a good offer. In fact, we believe it's an excellent offer."She said the government was doing all it could to minimise disruptions for Victorian students and their families.She said active discussions were underway with the Commonwealth about school funding.Gabrielle Williams took over from Ben Carroll as education minister last week.