Checking lump sums and backpay 2023

The advice on this page is to help you to check that the payments you received for the 2023 STCA settlement were correct.

There are three lump sums associated with the 2023 STCA and settlement: 

  • The ‘all teachers’ lump sum of $5,000 before tax,  
  • The PPTA members-only Teaching Council fee reimbursement lump sum of $710 before tax, and  
  • The PPTA members-only lump sum of $1,500 before tax. 

The two members-only lump sums are for those who were covered by the new STCA on 9 August and PPTA members on 31 July and on 9 August. 

  • The maximum payment for PPTA members is $7,210. 
  • The minimum payment for PPTA members is $1,360. 

Lump sums and leave 

If you are on paid leave you should have received the payments with your pay. 

If you are on approved unpaid leave, when you come back to work apply for the lump sums using payroll form EP31. https://www.edpay.govt.nz/site/forms/edpay-forms/default.aspx 

You should receive the payment you would have had based on your FTTE on your last working day before going on leave. 

To remain eligible for the payments you must return: 

  • on or before 3 July 2025 if you are on parental leave; or 
  • on or before the end of Term 1, 2024 for other types of leave  

How your payment is determined 

  • Permanently appointed full and part time teachers will get the lump sums based on their FTTE on 9 August. 
  • Full-time long-term relievers – those employed for more than three weeks – will get all payments in full. 
  • Part-time long-term relievers – those employed for more than three weeks – will get the Teaching Council lump sum in full and the other two prorated for your FTTE on 9 August.
  • Short term relievers, including day relievers, will get the Teaching Council lump sum in full and the other two prorated for your relieving days from the start of Term 4 2022 to 9 August 2023. 

You can be eligible to have the payment calculated under more than one category. The minimum payment for any member, regardless of FTTE, will be $1,360, and no teacher shall receive more than $7,210 gross in total.  If you were employed in different categories, you can only get the $710 lump sum once. 

For example: 

  • If you were employed part time on 9 August but were relieving prior to that and did more equivalent days relief earlier in the qualifying period than your current part time.  
  • If you were employed full time or part time at some time from the start of term 4 2022 but were a short term/day reliever on 9 August. 
  • If you are part time, but also do occasional day relief.  

Changing employment over the qualifying period

The Ministry has not confirmed the number of school days it is counting for calculating the lump sums. For assessing your lump sum payment across the qualifying period use the following information and the examples in the table below as a guide. 

  • The qualifying period from the start of term 4 2022 to 9 August 2023 = 158 school days. 
    • Term 4 2022 = 46 days 
    • Term 1 2023 = 46 days 
    • Term 2 2023 = 48 days 
    • Term 3 2023 = 18 days 
  • For day relieving 5 hours is one day. 

What to do if you think you have been underpaid 

Step 1:  Calculate what you think you should have had as a gross amount (pre-tax and other deductions). 

Use the models in the table below as a guide. 

If that is less than you have received, then: 

Step 2: Ask your EdPay contact at school to notify Edpay of the underpayment and provide your calculation to them.  

Give full details of your employment since the start of term 4 2022 to 9 August 2023. 

EdPay should explain the variance if they think the payment is correct. 

Step 3: If necessary, contact your PPTA Field Officer 

Common circumstance examples: 
 
*If meeting 31 July/9 August membership criteria: 

Employment  All teacher lump sum  PPTA member lump sum*  Teaching Council lump sum*  Total*(gross – before tax and other deductions) 
Full time on 9 August   $5000 Maximum payment  $1500 Maximum payment  $710   $7,210 Maximum payment 
0.8 FTTE part time on 9 August  0.8*$5000  $4,000  0.8*$1500  $1,200  $710  $5,910 
LTR full time  $5000  $1500  $710  $7,210 Maximum payment 
LTR relieving at 0.64 FTTE  0.64*$5000 $3200  0.64*$1500 $960  $710  $4,870.00 
Full time term 4 2022, 18 days relieving 2023  (46+18)/158*$5000   $2,025.32  (46+18)/158*$1500   $607.59  $710  $3,342.91 
Full time term 4 2022 and term 1 2023, 6 days relieving term 2-3  (92+6)/158*$5000   $3,101.28  (92+6)/15*$1500   $930.38  $710  $4,741.65 
0.6 part time on 9 August plus 10 hours relieving in 2023  0.6*$5000 + 10/(5*158)*$5000  $3063.29  0.6*$1500 + 10/(5*158)*$1,500 $918.99  $710  $4,692.28 
2 weeks short-term relieving full time  10 school days 10/158*$5000 $316.46 Minimum payment $500  10 school days 10/158*$1500 $94.94 Minimum payment $150  $710  $1,360.00 Minimum payment 
2 weeks relieving part time 0.5 FTTE   10 school days 10*0.5/158*$5000 $158.23 
Minimum payment $500 
  10 school days 10*0.5/158*$1500  $47.47 Minimum payment $150  $710  $1,360.00 Minimum payment 
2 weeks relieving position at 9 August plus 62 days relieving prior    72 school days 72/158*$5000 $2,278.48   72/158*$1500 =$683.54  $710  $3,672.03 
10 occasional days relieving   10/158*$5000   $316.46 Minimum payment $500  10/158*$1500 $94.94 Minimum payment $150  $710  $1,360.00 Minimum payment 
14 hours day relief in total  14/(5*158)*$5000   $88.61 Minimum payment $500  14/(5*158)*$1500 $26.58 Minimum payment $150  $710  $1,360.00 Minimum payment 

 

All STCA members who did day relief between the start of term 4 and 9 August 2023 

We are advised that EdPay over-counted the number of days in the qualifying period for the lump sum payment. This means that STCA members who received lump sum payments based on, or partly on, their number of days of relief teaching should receive a small additional correction payment. This will be an automatic adjustment by payroll. We will notify members when the payments are due to be made.

All members who moved between full or part time teaching and day relief between start of Term 4 2022 and date of ratification

The Ministry and PPTA have agreed that, for equity of treatment, members who were part time at 9 August (secondary), 18 August (area) and who did relief work between the start of Term 4 2022 and the date of ratification are eligible for lump sum payments based on the larger of the FTTE at the August date or the FTTE for the total work done in the qualifying period. For example, if you received a greater amount for the part time FTTE as at 12 June/9 August/18 August, you would get no additional hours, but if your reliever total (as an FTTE) was larger, you will be paid the difference. This will only affect a small number of members. This will be an automatic adjustment by payroll. We will notify members when the payments are due to be made. 

Job changers 

There are a small number of people who were not eligible for the “all teachers” and or “member only” one-off gross payments for teachers and principals provided for under collective agreements because they changed jobs within the education service. The Ministry has agreed that these teachers are assured of payment of the lump sums related to the collective agreement they are currently on if they: 

a) maintained employment as a teacher or principal in the education service; and 

b) have not received a one-off gross payment because they were not bound by any collective agreement as at the date of eligibility for the one-off payment; and 

c) have maintained continuous employment as a teacher or principal in the education service with a break of no more than one calendar month between roles; and 

d) maintained continuous union membership with one of the education sector unions with a break of no more than one month between moving union membership as they changed jobs 

Job changes covered by this include: 

  1. Moved to a new role covered by the same collective agreement, but the timing of the job change narrowly missed the relevant dates.
  2. Moved from a teaching position to a principal role.
  3. Moved between primary, secondary or area school teaching across state or state-integrated schools.

This will only affect people who changed jobs and requires an application. If you have already contacted PPTA we have registered your application and you do not need to apply again. 

Payroll will make the individual payment when the entitlement is confirmed by the Ministry. 

Exceptional circumstances 

In all cases above there is an opportunity for exceptional circumstances to be considered on a case by case basis. 

When payments will be made 

Education Payroll has not yet provided time frames for the lump sum adjustments but has indicated that because of the large number of payments for settlements, variations and remediation activity that is may be well into next year.    

Last modified on Monday, 13 November 2023 09:59