Specialist residential school non-teaching staff
If you work at a specialist residential school but you're not a teacher, you’ll be employed in a professional, administrative or residential role. Find out about your pay, allowances, leave and other employment conditions and entitlements.
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The rights and responsibilities specified in an employment agreement must be adhered to. This page supports boards and specialist residential school non-teaching staff to understand the rights and responsibilities that are associated with their roles, as stated in a non-teaching staff member’s employment agreement.
- Location of special residential schools
- Employment agreements
- Your pay
- Pay increases
- Allowances
- Leave
Location of special residential schools
The specialist residential schools in New Zealand are Hallswell Residential College, Westbridge Residential School, Ko Taku Reo and Salisbury School.
Employment agreements
Special residential school staff are covered by:
- the Specialist Residential Schools’ Collective Agreement (SRSCA), or
- an individual employment agreement (IEA), with similar terms and conditions to the SRSCA.
Who's covered by the SRSCA
You're covered by the collective agreement if:
- your work is covered by this agreement, and
- you’re a member of the New Zealand Public Service Association (PSA).
Specialist Residential Schools’ Collective Agreement 2022-2025
Who's covered by the individual employment agreement (IEA)
You need to sign an IEA if:
- your work is covered by the collective agreement, but
- you're not a member of the PSA.
The Ministry of Education develops and publishes the IEA The terms and conditions of your work are similar to the collective agreement.
Specialist Residential Schools’ Individual Employment Agreement(external link)
Your pay
For information about your pay refer to Part 4 of the collective agreement.
All non-teaching jobs at specialist residential schools are classified as either:
- administration
- technical
- special services
- general services, or
- residential.
Each classification is also split into grades. Your role’s classification and grade will depend on:
- the complexity of your job
- your qualifications and experience, and
- whether you have supervision or management responsibilities.
The following clauses of the collective agreement sets out the salary scales for the different classifications and grades:
Clause 4B.3 - for Librarian and Library Assistants
Clause 4A.3 - for Administration Support Staff
If you work part time, your pay is a percentage of the full-time pay for your role, calculated by the number of hours you work each week.
Pay increases
Each pay grade has steps within it and you can move up those steps based on your performance review each year, as set out in the clauses below:
Clause 4B.5 - for Librarian and Library Assistants
Clause 4A.5 - for Administration Support Staff
Clause 4.7 - for all other roles except those in the Specialist/Executive Management Group
Allowances
Allowances are set out in Part 6 of the collective agreement.
Part 6 - Allowances and Reimbursement of Expenses
These include allowances for:
- transport (if you have to use your own car for school business – $0.59 cents per kilometre)
- being on call ($30 a day)
- going on a school camp or similar activity ($20 a day).
You can also get a higher duties and special duties allowance if you do a higher graded job for 5 days or more.
Leave
Leave entitlements are set out in Part 5 of the collective agreement.
Part 5 - Holiday and Leave Provisions
Annual leave
If you're a standard employee, you get 5 weeks' annual leave each year plus 1 recreation day, which is on top of the normal public holidays. After 6 years' service, you get 6 weeks' annual leave plus 1 recreation day.
You can carry forward up to 5 days of your annual leave to the next year, but not your recreation day. You can use up to half of your next year’s allocation in advance.
If you're a rostered employee with hours of work set by clause 3.1.2(b) of the collective agreement, you don't have annual leave as you get paid time off when your school is closed, as set out in clause 5.6 of the collective agreement.
Clause 5.6 - Annual Leave for Rostered Employees
Sick leave
Your sick leave allocation is 10 days each year. You can use this to care for a sick family member (this is called sickness at home leave). You may be able to use some of your next year’s sick leave in advance if you need to. These entitlements are set out in clauses 5.9 and 5.10 of the collective agreement
Clause 5.10 - Sickness at Home
Disregarded sick leave
You are eligible to apply for disregarded sick leave, which means your sick leave can be credited back to you in specific circumstances following your return to work This entitlement is set out in clause 5.17 of the collective agreement.
Clause 5.17 - Disregarded Sick Leave
Other leave
You're entitled to bereavement/tangihanga leave, as set out in clause 5.12 of the collective agreement.
Clause 5.12 - Bereavement / Tangihanga Leave
You may be able to get special leave, with or without pay as set out in clause 5.8. You can apply for special leave for things like:
- working for the NZPSA
- study
- attending conferences and conventions, or
- to accompany your partner on an overseas posting.
Clause 5.8 - Special Leave With or Without Pay
Parental leave
You're entitled to parental leave, as set out in the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987. It applies to a birth mother, their partner/spouse and people who adopt a child aged under 6.
Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 - NZ Legislation website(external link)
Parental leave covers 4 types of leave.
- Primary carer leave – mothers and employees who are going to have the primary responsibility for a child (under six years) can get up to 26 weeks off work from around the time of birth or from the time you become the primary carer for the child in the case of adoption, home for life or whāngai.
- Partner/paternity leave – if your partner has had a baby or you've adopted a child together, you can take up to 2 weeks off.
- Extended leave – you may be able to extend your primary carer leave for an extra 52 weeks.
- Special leave – pregnant woman can have up to 10 days' pregnancy related leave.
You need to apply to your employer before taking parental leave. The usual notice required is 3 months but this can be reduced in some circumstances, for example if an adoption is arranged in a short time. The Employment New Zealand website explains how to apply for parental leave.
Parental leave - Employment New Zealand website(external link)
Parental leave payment
If you qualify for the parental leave payment, it's paid through Inland Revenue, so you need to apply for this payment and your school must confirm that you're entitled to parental leave.
If you work part time, information on the Employment New Zealand website can help you work out your parental leave payment.
Parental leave payment - Employment New Zealand website(external link)
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