Therapists' Pay Equity Claim

Information on the pay equity claim settlement for therapists, and steps on implementing the settlement.

Level of compliance Main audience Other

Inform

  • Principals and tumuaki
  • School boards
  • School board-employed:
    • Speech-language therapists
    • Occupational therapists 
    • Physiotherapists 
    • Music therapists 
  • Authorised payroll users

Settlement of the claim

We have reached agreement with NZEI Te Riu Roa on a settlement of the pay equity claim for therapists employed by the Ministry and school boards. 

Following a series of information sessions held by the union in February 2024, the settlement was approved by covered employees on Friday 1 March 2024.

Implementing the settlement

There are actions schools and kura who employ therapists need to take, as well as some things they need to know, to ensure covered employees receive the benefits and new pay rates resulting from the settlement.

You can read a summary of the actions and need-to-know information through the links below. A roadmap is also available which show the key dates in the implementation of the settlement.

This information is for school board-employed therapists only. For information for Ministry-employed therapists, see the Therapists section of the Ministry Pay Equity Claims page on Te Tāhuhu.

In May, together with NZEI Te Riu Roa and NZSTA, we will release further guidance to support schools and kura in understanding and implementing the changes resulting from the settlement.

The guidance will include information on:

  • settlement funding 
  • pay rate translations
  • payroll
  • the parental payment
  • the reimbursement of professional fees.

Settlement documents

To see a summary of our research that identified sex-based undervaluation for this workforce, download and read the evidence report.

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