Primary Principals' (NZEI) Collective Agreement

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Primary Principals' (NZEI Te Riu Roa) Collective Agreement [PDF, 778 KB]

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Email: employment.relations@education.govt.nz

Changes to the agreement

Read about the recent changes in the Primary Principals' (NZEI) Collective Agreement.

Changes to the Primary Principals’ (NZEI) Collective Agreement 2023-25

Part 5: Remuneration

Primary Principals' (NZEI) Collective Agreement
Effective: 3 July 2023 to 2 July 2025

  • 5.1 Unified Pay System
    • 5.1.1 The purpose of this clause is to maintain a Unified Pay System for principals in the state and state integrated compulsory education sector. The Unified Pay System applies to the roll-based, Equity Index and staffing components of principals’ remuneration.

      5.1.2 Mechanism

      1. The Secretary for Education shall, within one month of ratification of any collective agreement (or relevant variation thereof) applicable to principals of secondary schools in the state and integrated school sector, notify the NZEI Te Riu Roa National Secretary of any changes to the roll-based, staffing-based, or Equity Index payment components of principals remuneration and offer such changes to principals covered by the PPCA.
      2. The NZEI Te Riu Roa National Secretary shall, within one month of receipt of the offer described in clause 5.1.2(a), advise the Secretary whether NZEI Te Riu Roa wishes to accept such offer. The parties agree that upon receipt of NZEI's acceptance of the offer the PPCA shall be deemed to be varied pursuant to clause 1.6 in the terms outlined in the offer as advised by the Secretary.

      5.1.3 Clause 5.1 shall apply from 3 July 2023 to 2 July 2025. Thereafter this clause will cease to apply and shall have no effect.

  • 5.2 Remuneration
    • 5.2.1 A principal’s salary shall comprise the school roll-based salary (U-grade) in clause 5.2.2, the staffing-based salary component in clause 5.2.3, the Equity Index payment (where applicable) in clause 5.2.4, the payment for Leadership in Literacy and Numeracy in clause 5.2.5, and the Career payment in clause 4.4.1(f) (where applicable).

      5.2.2 The Principal’s salary shall be determined in accordance with the grade of the school (i.e. U1-U16):

      School roll-based salary component

      U-Grade Rates effective
      20 August 2021
      Rate effective
      3 July 2023
      Rate effective
      3 July 2024
      Rate effective
      2 December 2024
      U1 $98,031 $103,913 $107,030 $118,003
      U2 $98,031 $103.913 $107,030 $118,003
      U3 $106,170 $112,540 $115,916 $118,003
      U4 $114,489 $121,358 $124,999 $127,249
      U5 $122,808 $130,176 $134,082 $136,495
      U6 $127,564 $135,218 $139,274 $141,781
      U7 $132,515 $140,466 $144,680 $147,284
      U8 $137,468 $145,716 $150,088 $152,789
      U9 $140,835 $149,285 $153,764 $156,531
      U10 $144,201 $152,853 $157,439 $160,273
      U11 $149,114 $158,061 $162,803 $165,733
      U12 $154,028 $163,270 $168,168 $171,195
      U13 $158,621 $168,138 $173,182 $176,300
      U14 $163,216 $173,009 $178,199 $181,407
      U15 $167,237 $177,271 $182,589 $185,876
      U16 $171,260 $181,536 $186,982 $190,347

      5.2.3 Staffing based salary component

      In addition to the school roll-based salary component specified in clause 5.2.2, the salary of principals shall include the staffing-based salary component calculated according to the following formula:

      Total Teacher Staff (TTS) Rates effective 20 August 2021
      ≤ 13 ($822 * TTS) + $3,201
      > 13 ($162 * TTS) + $12,231

      The staffing based salary component is based on total teacher staffing that includes entitlement, attached and additional staffing, in addition to entitlement staffing transfer, teacher specific time allowances and staffing for attached units under Boards as determined in the Ministry staffing notice. It does not include teachers who may be employed above entitlement from a Board’s operations funding.

      Total teacher staff shall be based on the greater of the provisional (September) staffing roll or the confirmed (March) staffing roll which is determined annually.

      5.2.4 Until 27 January 2024, principals whose school held a decile rating of 1, 2, 3 or 4 will continue to receive a decile payment according to the tables in Appendix 7.

      From the start of the 2024 school year, the decile payment will cease and principals in schools with an Equity Index number of 478 to 569 shall also be paid an Equity Index payment in addition to base salary as specified in 5.2.1 and 5.2.2 above. The Equity Index payment for each principal will be calculated by multiplying the Equity Index number of their school by nine, with the calculation to be undertaken annually.

      1. Where a principal’s remuneration is reduced either:
        1. In the translation from the previous decile-based payment to the Equity Index payment, or;
        2. Because the annual Equity Index review process results in their school falling below the Equity Index number of 478 that entitles them to an Equity Index payment;
          Then their salary will be protected for a 24-month period from the point of change.

       5.2.5 Leadership in Literacy and Numeracy

      1. A principal covered by this Agreement shall be entitled to a base per annum payment and a further per annum payment (based on entitlement teachers only, as determined in the annual provisional staffing notice). The base per annum payment will be:
        Up to 22 July 2024 From 22 July 2024
        up to 28 January 2025
        From 28 January 2025
        $2,320 $4,000 $8,000
        The further per annum payment is as follows:
        1. U1 – U5 school - $100 per entitlement teacher
        2. U6 school - $80 per entitlement teacher
        3. U7 school and above - $60 per entitlement teacher.
        These payments are in recognition of the work that principals do to lead, develop and implement programmes to increase literacy and numeracy and to implement the NZ Curriculum and/or Te Reo Māori i roto i Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. A principal who receives this payment shall not be entitled to receive a Leadership in Realising Youth Potential payment as provided for in the Secondary Principals’ Collective Agreement. This payment is payable fortnightly.
        For clarity, ‘entitlement teachers only” shall mean the school’s total staffing entitlement minus one. It shall not include attached or additional staffing.
  • 5.3 Definition of Roll
    • 5.3.1 For the purposes of determining a principal’s U grade as per clauses 5.2.2 and 5.2.4 “roll” shall mean the greater of the provisional (September) staffing roll or the confirmed (March) staffing roll, as determined by the relevant Staffing Order in Council, except that students who are included in the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme (at 1 July for the September school roll purposes) shall be counted on the following basis:

        • Students classified as “very high” under the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme shall be counted as six instead of one;
        • Students classified as “high” under the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme shall be counted as three instead of one.

      Except that:

        • Students at Westbridge Residential School will count as six instead of one;
        • Students at Salisbury and Halswell residential schools who are not included in the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme will count as three instead of one;
        • Students at Van Asch and Kelston residential schools who are not included in the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme will count as one.
  • 5.4 Salary Protection
    • Grading Changes

      5.4.1 Where the appropriate base salary of a principal (as specified in clause 5.2.2) changes as a result of a drop in grade of the position and the principal’s existing base salary exceeds the rate for the new grade; and the change in grade is contained in the September Staffing Notice, and is not countered by an increase generated in the 1 March roll, the principal’s salary above the rate for the new grade will be protected for a period of 24 months from the beginning of the school year that follows the September Staffing Notice. After the 24 month period of salary protection, the principal shall be paid no more than the rate for the new grade. Salary protection under this clause shall lapse if the principal accepts an alternative position.

      5.4.2 Where a grading reduction determined by the September provisional roll, is countered by a grading increase generated by the 1 March roll, the U grade of the principal reverts to the previous higher U grade and the associated salary protection ceases.

      5.4.3 Where the grade of a position increases, and this increase is contained in the September Staffing Notice, the principal will move to the new rate at the beginning of the new school year.

      5.4.4 For the avoidance of doubt, the base rate for the purposes of salary protection in clause 5.4.1 includes the base salary according to U grade weighting (roll size) but does not include the salary generated by the supplementary formula in clause 5.2.3 (FTTE size).

  • 5.5 Payment of Salaries
    • 5.5.1 Basis of Calculation

      The salaries of principals shall be paid fortnightly and the gross salary for a full pay period is calculated as 14/365ths of the annual salary rate. For broken periods the calculation is the number of days due multiplied by the annual rate and divided by 365. Gross salary comprises all salary and allowances (temporary and those paid on a regular basis).

      5.5.2 Method of Payment

      Salaries shall be paid fortnightly by direct credit to the principal’s nominated bank account.

      5.5.3 Holiday Pay

      Holiday pay at the rate of 30 per cent of salary shall be based on the school year and shall not be payable beyond 27 January. For holiday pay purposes, teaching service shall comprise all paid service including weekends and statutory holidays, but not school vacations. Time spent on secondment to a Specified Education Sector Agency will not be recognised as service for the purposes of holiday pay.

  • 5.6 Retirement Savings
    • 5.6.1 Principals are eligible to join a KiwiSaver scheme in accordance with the terms of those schemes.

      5.6.2 Employer or government contributions to retirement or superannuation schemes which are closed to new members (and include the Teachers’ Retirement Savings Scheme and the Government Superannuation Fund), shall continue in accordance with the terms of those schemes.

      5.6.3 Where government or employer contributions are made to another retirement or superannuation scheme of which a principal is a member, then that principal is only eligible to receive employer or government contributions to a KiwiSaver scheme to the extent that those combined contributions equal the minimum KiwiSaver employer or government contributions. If the government or employer contributions made to another retirement or superannuation scheme of which a principal is a member equal or exceed to the full minimum KiwiSaver employer or government contributions, then that principal is not eligible to receive employer or government contributions to a KiwiSaver scheme.