The government moved away from its position that the matter be referred for arbitration to the Tasmanian Industrial Commission on Thursday to offer unions a 12 month deal which includes a 2.1 per cent wage increase from the date the previous agreement expired and a 0.25 per cent bonus when the deal is signed.

New state service employees will also be eligible for a sign on bonus of up to $120.

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Treasurer Peter Gutwein said the deal does not include any efficiency savings measures and would cost $8 million.

"This offer is quite different to other offers that we have made in that other offers have included a raft of terms and conditions," Mr Gutwein said.

"What this does is reset the headline wage rate."

AEU state president Helen Richardson said the latest offer takes away previously offered workload reductions that would improve educational outcomes for Tasmanian students.

"The government's attempt at a quick fix one-size-fits-all approach delivers nothing to support principals, no mentor time for beginning teachers and leaves primary teachers with an unsustainable workload," Ms Richardson said.

Earlier this year, the AEU backed out of a deal endorsed by 70 per cent of members which would have delivered a reduction in primary teacher contact hours but also included a reduction in relief teacher loading.

Community and Public Sector Union secretary Tom Lynch, however, said the new offer was a big step forward in the negotiations.

"It would have been dreadful for everybody if this had dragged on to another round of industrial action," Mr Lynch said.

"We think this is an offer that our members would give serious consideration to.

"We will go out to members over the next fortnight," Mr Lynch said.

Mr Lynch said he was not excited that the deal was only for 12 months, but said in the current environment it was a reasonable place to be at.

"Arbitration was going to be a slow and complex process," he said.

Health and Community Services Union secretary Tim Jacobson said the new offer was pleasing because the government had taken off the table a number of trade-offs they had pursued previously

"This offer doesn't seek to take away any conditions of workers," Mr Jacobson said.

"In health and community services, where we have got pressure at the moment, it will serve to reset the lack of willingness from workers to show good faith based on the fact they didn't believe the government respected the work they were doing."

Mr Gutwein credited the breakthrough to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation's "good faith" decision to accept a previous 12 month offer.

"The ANMF's example has been a catalyst for other Tasmanian public sector unions to come back to the table to negotiate for the benefit of their members," Mr Gutwein said.

ANMF branch secretary Emily Shepherd said the union would retain the conditions already bargained for in their previous agreement.

"We will be retaining the additional conditions of clinical coaches, specialist career pathways and tidying up of some award anomalies and now have attracted a wage increase," Ms Shepherd said.

Ms Shepherd said the ANMF's decision to accept the state's previous 12 month offer was pivotal in keeping negotiations open.

"We're very pleased to have led the way in negotiations and we are very pleased the government is making this offer to other unions," she said.

Ms Shepherd said the move to a 2.35 per cent pay increase set a positive tone for negotiating a longer term agreement.

"Should the good faith negotiations break down we will consider industrial action but we are hopeful that won't be required," Ms Shepherd said.

United Voice branch secretary Jannette Armstrong said the new offer showed industrial action taken by Education Facility Attendants, which resulted in the closure of two schools in the North-West, was justified.

"The government has had room to move," Ms Armstrong said.

"Our members will be really pleased that the government has come back to the table in light of those actions and has started to negotiate.

"The last few weeks of industrial action were really difficult for our members ... and it was not something members chose to do lightly."

The government is hopeful a subsequent two or three year deal will be reached by the end of November with the view that if a longer term agreement could not be reached the matter would go to arbitration.

Mr Gutwein said the government has sought to reset its relationship with the unions.

"We believe we are now in a position where we can move forward," Mr Gutwein said.

Mr Lynch said he was hopeful the offer was a genuine "reset" in the negotiations.

"We will all go into the next round of negotiations with that spirit," Mr Lynch said.

"There was a feeling around the table on Thursday, with the leadership of the Premier ... that we would look at this in a different way."

Unions have until Wednesday, August 7 to respond to the government's offer.