It is often said that teachers’ salaries are not as high as they deserve. I agree with that. Teachers are among those who, like police officers or firefighters, deserve to be properly rewarded. The Polish social security system thinks about teachers even when they are no longer doing their job. However, not every teacher knows that after 56 years he or she can apply for a regular monthly allowance. This is basically a benefit similar to the police pension.

Who is the benefit for?

It is a compensation benefit available to those who work in education. It is a pre-retirement allowance for employees of schools as well as pre-schools and centres. It is granted if a teacher, teacher educator or educator of pre-retirement age has not taken up another job after leaving an educational institution.

The benefit applies to both public and private bodies with the relevant authorisations. In practice, it therefore applies to teachers, educators, but also to other educators in various types of educational and care institutions. Older teachers do not have to worry that the state will leave them in the lurch when they leave their jobs. Of course, certain conditions have to be met. It is not enough to teach for a few years and expect to get money from the state.

What you have to do

The most important thing is age. Women must be over 56 and men 61. However, the age limit increases every year.

Other conditions:

  • At least 30 years of experience, including at least 20 years of part-time teaching experience.
  • The method of termination is also important. To be eligible for the benefit, employment must be terminated at the employee’s own request or in situations such as school closure or organisational changes.
━━ ( Source: National Cancer Institute /  Unsplash+ )

How the dose is calculated

The amount of the allowance is always calculated individually. The amount of the compensation allowance is based on the sum of the indexed pension contributions, the indexed initial capital credited to the individual ZUS account and the life expectancy at age 60.

At the beginning of the year, the average benefit amounted to about PLN 4,270 per month. The benefit cannot be lower than the minimum pension, which is currently PLN 1978.49 gross. It is important to say that receiving the benefit does not reduce the capital for future pension payments. But what about the salaries of Polish teachers when they are engaged in the education of children and young people?

You can’t avoid paperwork

As there are a number of points that need to be met in order to qualify for the benefit, some paperwork is required. To receive the benefit, you must submit an application to the Social Security Office. Along with the application, you must submit proof of length of employment. However, it is not just that. Ideally, you should submit the documents 30 days before you meet all the requirements. The reason? Filing too soon can lead to a denial because you are not yet eligible for benefits. Conversely, if you submit the paperwork late, you must expect a delay in benefit payments.

It’s worth it

You have to do something to get your benefit. However, it is important that only those who are really entitled to the benefit provided by the state get it. In my opinion, it is just as well that the benefit cannot be abused by those who have only devoted themselves to a teaching career for a short time, just out of, for example, calculation. Unfortunately, there are still those who are just looking for a way to make money without working. It is precisely because of such people that it is necessary to have a well-constructed social support system.

Teachers’ remuneration

Poland has one of the lowest teacher salaries compared to other countries. Polish teachers’ salaries have also been discussed on Reddit. Discussants heard about English teachers moving to Poland for work. However, he found out that the salary he was offered was basically the minimum wage in his country.

Another discussant talks about his experience. She said she loved her job as a teacher in Poland. Her salary was around 500 USD. However, she saw the fact that housing in the house was provided by the school as an advantage. Thus, she did not have to pay for housing and saved a lot of money per month. “I didn’t have a problem to make a living. I didn’t save on food, I didn’t lose my social life,” said a discussant posing as a selil-mor.