Regional attraction and retention payment
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 128 No 7, 29 September 2023, page no. 12
Attraction and retention payments for hard-to-staff schools were secured during negotiations for the Department of Education State School Teacher’s Certified Agreement 2022.
The payments (lump sum, point-in-time payments of $900 made to teachers in transfer rating 2 and 3 locations in regional, rural and remote Queensland) recognise the unique opportunities and challenges associated with working in these state schools.
Eligibility is based on the school meeting the following criteria:
- TR2 and TR3 rating in rural or remote settings.
- a retention rate of 84 per cent or less over the past three years (2020 to 2022)
- an average length of service of six years or less (from 2020 to 2023).
On 27 June, the department made the initial payment to teachers only – school leaders and heads of program did not receive the payment.
It is the clear view of the QTU that all teachers, inclusive of school leaders and heads of program, should have received the payment. Not only are teachers difficult to attract and retain in these targeted areas, but school leaders and heads of program also fall into this difficult-to-staff category.
The QTU took up the issue with the department, but in the absence of a satisfactory outcome, a formal dispute was launched.
The dispute was successfully resolved, and on the 28 August the QTU was advised that the $900 payment for classified teachers had been processed for payment on 5 September. The department contacted classified officers in the identified schools advising them of the payment they would be receiving.
This is a great win for our school leaders and heads of program.
Considerations for eligibility
The next stage of the process is to ensure that schools who have difficulty attracting staff also receive the payment. The QTU believes that the following issues regarding staffing ought to be taken into consideration when schools are considered for eligibility for the attraction and retention payment by the Eligibility Review Committee.
- The timing of the vacancies needs to be considered. Clearly, the commencement of the school year is one factor; however numbers are down in schools on a term-by-term basis.
- The cost of the Flying Squad compared with the cost of an expansion of the vacancy-driven incentive needs to be strongly considered as a factor within the vacancy review. The number of Flying Squad members at a school ought to be taken into account.
- The vacancies need to be based on the current allocative methodology, rather than on an Investing for Sucess (I4S)-driven vacancy rate.
- Some members in promotional positions are timetabled in classes or routinely do not receive their industrial entitlements as a result of filling gaps within the teaching cohort. Addressing this will ensure that members receive their release time in accordance with their entitlements and will also provide a clear picture of the actual vacancies within a school.
- The number of standing vacancies compared to the size of the school needs to be considered . What ought to be considered reasonable under the circumstances? How many vacancies proportionally? As such, the threshold position for receiving the attraction payment (automatic receipt of payment) ought to include the following points:
- the school is eligible for rapid response assistance
- accumulation of staffing credits
- the department's vacancy rating data (7-point system with both critical level 7 and level 6 to be automatically entitled to the payment).
Identified schools will then be discussed by the Eligibility Review Committee on a region-by-region basis. The committee will include the following members:
- Director, Teacher Talent and Mobility
- Manager, Teacher Talent and Mobility
- regional HR business partner (director) appropriate to school location
- QTU Organiser appropriate to school location
- the relevant QTU case officer.
If you have questions regarding your eligibility for the payment, send them to Recruiting.MyHR@qed.qld.gov.au and CC qtu@qtu.asn.au
Ex-pat allowance
Negotiations are continuing around eligibility for the ex-pat allowance. Members who have questions regarding this are encouraged to email Recruiting.MyHR@qed.qld.gov.au and CC qtu@qtu.asn.au