Clause 2.9 and Appendix 6 of the Area School Teachers’ Collective AgreementArea School Teachers’ Collective Agreement set out the medical retirement rules and processes.
Below is a summary of the information in the collective agreement. Please read the clauses in your agreement and get independent advice, such as from a union representative or employment lawyer, if you have questions. It’s important that you discuss the options with your employer if you are thinking about taking medical retirement.
You can apply for medical retirement if:
- you are a current, permanent teacher at an area school, and
- you are covered by the terms and conditions of the relevant collective agreement, and
- you have a terminal or a serious illness that prevents you from doing your job now and for the foreseeable future.
Make sure you apply for medical retirement while you are still an employee. Medical retirement can’t be granted after you resign or retire.
You must apply to your board of trustees using the medical retirement application form , available at the bottom of this page. Make sure you include a written statement from a medical specialist that sets out why you will not be able to return to work. This statement must describe the nature of your illness and how it affects your ability to work. If you are unable to get a specialist’s opinion, you can provide a general practitioner’s opinion, but your GP will need to explain why it is not possible for you to get a specialist’s opinion.
If your board considers the medical evidence supports your application, they will complete the rest of the form and send it, along with the medical information, to the Ministry of Education.
If the Ministry agrees to your medical retirement, you’ll be medically retired from the date of the letter they send your employer. Your school will inform the New Zealand Teachers Council that you’re leaving the teaching profession and won’t return because of health reasons.
Your employer will talk to you about the options you can choose for your medical retirement payment. See appendix 6, 6.8 of your collective agreement.
If you’re granted medical retirement, you’re the only person who can get a payment. For example, if you die before getting the payment, it can’t be paid to your estate. In these cases, there may be grounds for a compassionate grant.
You can’t get medical retirement if you’re receiving ACC payments for your condition. You can’t get medical retirement for stress alone, although you may get it if you have a terminal or serious illness that stress has contributed to.
Your board of trustees can apply for your medical retirement if they feel it’s necessary. This is called an employer initiated process , and it’s covered in appendix 6, 6.5 of your collective agreement.