This page contains information on:

Salary | Leave | Other Benefits (Retirement, Insurance, and etc.)

Salary

Teachers and other licensed staff (e.g. media specialists, psychologists, audiologists, speech-language pathologists, counselors and social workers) are paid on state-adopted salary schedules based on licensure, years of experience, and degree held.

Assistant principals are paid on a state-adopted salary schedule based on licensure, years of experience, and degree held.

Principals are paid on a state-adopted salary schedule based upon years of experience in education, years as a school administrator, and number of state-funded teachers supervised.

Salaries for all other public school employees are determined by the position. Contact the Human Resources Department to obtain salary information or click here to view additional state salary schedule information from the NC Department of Public Instruction.

Local Salary Supplement

All permanent teachers and other non-contract staff members in school-based positions which require a teaching certificate receive a local supplement equal to 8.5% of their base salary (effective November 2014). The supplement is paid in 2 installments, one in the fall and one in the spring. The Board of Education has a plan to increase the local supplement to 10%. All teacher assistants and office support professionals receive an annual local salary supplement equal to 2% of their base salary each year as well.

National Board Certification

Teachers are encouraged to become certified by the National Board for Professional Teacher Standards (NBPTS). Certification by the NBPTS results in a 12% salary increase. To learn more about NBPTS contact the Teacher Education Section of the Division of Human Resource Management at 919-807-3309 or visit the web at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/nbpts. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards can be reached at 1-800-228-3224 or visit their web page at http://www.nbpts.org.

Employee Leave Information

Earned Leave

Vacation Leave: Permanent full-time and part-time employees earn annual vacation leave. To earn vacation leave in a given month, employees must be working or on paid leave during one-half or more of the workdays in a monthly pay period. Eligible part-time permanent employees earn leave equal to their percentage of full-time employment. State regulations and policies established by local school systems govern when vacation leave may be taken. Unused vacation leave can be accumulated and a maximum of 30 days carried forward to the next fiscal year which begins on July 1st. On June 30th of each year, any accumulated days of vacation leave in excess of 30 days are converted to sick leave days. Teachers with accumulated annual vacation leave days in excess of 30 that are attributable to attending required workdays and who did not have the opportunity to use all of their vacation leave earned during the school calendar may opt to be paid for some of these days. When employees transfer among local educational agencies, vacation leave will also be transferred. Vacation leave may be transferred to a state agency if that agency is willing to accept it. Employees leaving the public schools will be paid for up to 30 days of accumulated leave. In case of death, the employee's estate will receive payment for any accumulated vacation leave up to 30 days.
Employees earn leave based on years of service as follows:

Sick Leave
Permanent full-time and part-time employees who are working, or are on paid leave for one-half or more of the workdays in a monthly pay period, earn sick leave at the rate of one day per month. Eligible permanent part-time employees earn sick leave equal to their percentage of full-time employment. Sick leave may be granted for the following:

• Personal illness, injury, or other temporary disability, or

• Illness in the employee's immediate family that necessitates the employee's attendance, or

• Death in the immediate family, or

• Medical appointments.

Sick leave may be accumulated indefinitely and is transferable among local school systems, and may be transferred to a state agency, community college or technical institute if the receiving agency is willing to accept the leave. Upon retirement accrued sick leave may be applied toward creditable state service. If an employee separates from service prior to retirement, sick leave will be held for 60 months.

Extended Sick Leave
Classroom teachers are provided up to 20 days each year of extended sick leave, less a $50 per day deduction to help defray the cost of substitutes. Extended sick leave may be used for personal illness, personal injury, or other personal temporary disability. Extended sick leave can only be used after all sick leave and available vacation leave have been exhausted. Unused extended sick leave does not carry forward to subsequent school years.

Voluntary Shared Leave
Voluntary shared leave is intended to provide economic relief for employees who face financial hardship due to a prolonged absence or frequent short-term absences caused by a serious medical condition. Voluntary shared leave may also be used during the required waiting period for short-term disability. An employee who is receiving benefits or is eligible to receive benefits from the Disability Income Plan is not eligible to receive donated leave.
Permanent full-time and part-time employees are eligible to receive donated leave. The employee must exhaust available sick leave and vacation leave before using donated leave. Employees who are approved by their superintendent to receive donated leave may receive annual vacation leave from any employee in their own school system. With the approval of the superintendent, annual vacation leave and/or sick leave may be received from an immediate family member in any school system or state agency. (For more information on voluntary shared leave, see the Benefits Manual section 04.3).
Public school employees cannot donate or receive leave from employees or family members in community colleges institutions or in county agencies of mental health, public health, social services or emergency management.

Holiday Leave
Twelve-month employees normally observe 11 holidays per year. Ten-month employees normally observe 10 holidays per year. When Christmas falls on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday an additional day of holiday leave is provided. Local boards of education determine when holidays are scheduled. Most local boards of education incorporate the holiday schedule adopted for state employees when developing the school calendar.

Personal Leave
Teachers in permanent positions earn two days of personal leave during the ten-month school term (.2 days per month). When used, a salary deduction of $50 per day is assessed. These days can be accumulated to a maximum of five days and are transferable among school systems. Personal leave cannot be advanced and is granted upon authorization of an employee's immediate supervisor. This type of leave is not normally provided on the first day of school, a required teacher workday, or the last day before or the next working day after a holiday or scheduled vacation day. In special situations, supervisors may approve leave which does not conform to these stipulations.

Compensatory Leave
Only employees classified as nonexempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) who work more than 40 hours in a work week are eligible for overtime pay. Compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay may be given if agreed to by the employee and employer prior to the performance of the work. Compensatory time off is calculated at the rate of one and one-half hours for each hour of overtime worked. Compensatory leave may be accumulated to a maximum of 240 hours. When the maximum is reached, additional overtime work must be paid. If a nonexempt employee terminates employment, he/she must be paid for any unused compensatory leave.

Special Leave

Jury Duty
When permanent school employees are absent from work to serve on a jury, no deduction is made from their regular salaries. Employees are entitled to their regular compensation plus any fees received for jury duty.

Court Attendance
When employees are absent from work to attend court in connection with their official duty or because they were subpoenaed as a witness to a crime, no salary deduction is made. Except for travel reimbursement, any fees received in an official capacity must be returned to the local school system. If, however, an employee must be absent from work as a defendant, plaintiff, or witness in a case for personal matters, no salary is received unless the employee uses appropriate vacation leave or personal leave.

Parental Leave
Permanent full-time and part-time school employees may request a leave of absence using appropriate paid leave and/or leave without pay for up to one calendar year immediately following the birth or adoption of a child. The 12 months of leave may be extended for the remainder of the school year when this leave would otherwise end in the latter half of the school year.

Family Medical Leave Act
The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 provides eligible employees with family and medical leave without pay for up to 12 weeks for the birth or adoption of a child; to care for a spouse, son, daughter or parent who has a serious medical condition; or a serious health condition of the employee. During the 12 weeks, the employer-paid portion of health benefits will be maintained. The 12 weeks provided by FMLA are not in addition to the parental leave of absence. It is part of this leave if it is requested and approved. Special provisions in the federal legislation regarding instructional personnel should be discussed with your employer or the U.S. Department of Labor.

Military Leave
Leave with pay is granted to members of reserve components of the U.S. Armed Forces for certain periods of active duty training and for state military duty. Leave with pay is extended to full-time or part-time permanent school employees, normally not to exceed 15 working days during the federal fiscal year (October 1st - September 30th), for training and military maneuvers. Military leave without pay can be granted for one enlistment period of active service, not to exceed five years plus 90 days.

Leave of Absence Without Pay
Public school employees may be granted leaves of absence without pay for periods determined by the local administrative unit. This leave should be requested in advance and must comply with regulations adopted by the local school system. Local school systems will assist with the proper procedures for applying for a leave of absence.