More bonuses on the way for North Carolina’s state workers by the holidays. What to know

Tens of thousands of North Carolina state employees will see an extra $1,000 in their paychecks on Dec. 21, in time for the holidays.

And now the state says some state employees will see an additional $500 bonus in that paycheck, too.

The $500 bonuses are able to be added because Gov. Roy Cooper signed what is known as the budget technical corrections bill into law on Monday, the Office of State Human Resources said this week. The state budget that the legislature passed and Cooper signed last month included a series of raises and bonuses for state employees and teachers.

Here’s who gets the additional $500 bonus in their Dec. 21 paycheck:

▪ Employees earning less than $75,000.

▪ Law enforcement officers.

▪ Workers in the Department of Public Safety, Correction and Juvenile Justice with job duties requiring frequent in-person contact.

▪ Department of Health and Human Services workers in 24-hour residential or treatment facilities.

What about education bonuses?

Money is also available for educator bonuses, but those could land in paychecks any time between now and Jan. 31. It is up to individual public school units to determine the timing, a Department of Public Instruction spokesperson said.

Here are more details about educator bonuses from DPI:

▪ Any full-time, permanent employee in a public school unit who was employed on Dec. 1, 2021, will receive the $1,000 lump-sum bonus. That includes anyone who is retiring effective Jan. 1, 2022.

▪ The $500 bonuses for those making less than $75,000 are based on what the employee’s salary was as of Dec. 1, before the raises included in the state budget.

▪ Qualifying staff at charter schools will take longer to receive all the bonus allocations because of required reporting in January.

What about raises?

Raises for a range of state employees and education workers are unlikely to go into effect until January. A date has not yet been announced.

For more information, visit oshr.nc.gov.

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