ALLOWANCES APPLICABLE TO PROFESSIONAL STAFF ONLY

79. HIGHER DUTIES ALLOWANCE

79.1 A staff member who is required to act in a position of higher classification than that which the staff member occupies will be paid an allowance computed in accordance with this clause.

Qualification for allowance

79.2 A professional staff member who is required to act in a position of higher classification than that which the professional staff member occupies shall be paid a higher duties allowance.  The minimum period of acting in a higher level position with a classification of up to HEW 7 shall be more than two weeks.  The minimum period of acting in a higher level position with a classification above HEW 7 shall be more than four weeks.  Where a staff member has acted in a higher level position for the applicable qualifying period of more than two or four weeks, the higher duties allowance will be payable from the date the staff member commenced performing the higher duties.

79.3 For the purposes of determining the minimum periods as outlined above, holidays shall count when the acting at the higher level takes place both before and after the holiday.

79.4 The higher duties allowance shall be the difference between the professional staff member’s substantive salary and the minimum salary point of the higher level position.

79.5 If the professional staff member is not performing the full range of the duties of the higher level position, he/she shall be paid a pro rata amount of the difference between the staff member’s substantive salary and the minimum salary point of the higher level position.

79.6 A professional staff member shall be eligible to receive an increment at the higher level position if they have served for a continuous period of 12 months at the higher level, or a total period of 12 months over a 24-month period.

79.7 If a professional staff member is promoted to the higher level position, they shall not suffer any reduction in remuneration and shall be promoted on the same incremental level at which they were acting.

79.8 Any periods of acting at the higher level shall be taken into account in determining future increments should a professional staff member be promoted to the higher level.

79.9 A  professional staff member who is acting in a higher level position shall be entitled to continue to receive a higher duties allowance when they proceed on paid leave or a rostered day off, other than long service leave, provided the acting in the higher level position would have continued but for the taking of leave.