ThE GRiEvanCE CORnER

Deconstructing Your DOE Pay Stub

Reprinted from The Grievance Corner by BobReich, CSANews, March 2012

his column deals with something that affects all

of us. All NYC Department of Education administrators receive a bi-weekly pay check. Its
important to understand all the boxed items
that appear on the check stub. Below, we have recreated the typical checkstub. Please refer to the numbers
in the diagrams as I explain what each item means.
Number 1 is your individual pension number. You
should write this down and keep it in a safe place.
Number 2 reflects your total earnings for this pay
period prior to taxes. Item 3 reflects the federal taxes
withheld from this check as well as Social Security and
Medicare deductions. Item 4 reflects the deduction for
state and city taxes. Item 5 would be checked if you
have filed a waiver and do not pay city taxes. Item 6
is the total amount of money withheld during a particular pay period. Item 7 is the actual amount of
money you are taking home in a particular pay
period. Item 8 reflects the balance of days in you
CAR (Cumulative Absence Reserve) and your
annual leave balance. If you believe that the CAR
data is incorrect, speak with your payroll secretary.
Item 9 is your contribution to a tax-deferred annuity.
If, after reviewing your stub, you see that you are not
paying into TDA, you should reconsider this. The
Teachers Retirement System has a booklet on its website that explains the benefits and the procedures to
follow to enroll. (The TRS website is www.trsnyc.org.)
Item 10 shows your total earnings for the pay
year to-date. Follow that line across, and you can see
how much in taxes you have paid to the feds, the

T
If you
are not
paying
into
TDA, you
should
reconsider.
1 Pension
10 Total

number

2 Total

earnings

earnings
and
deductions
for fiscal
year

week gross
Income

UFT POLDUES
TRS STD 414h

3 percent
deduction
(for 10 years)

Bob Reich is the CSA Director of Grievances. Any questions or concerns, just email him at bob@csa-nyc.org.

4 State and
city taxes

5 City

residency waiver

6 Total
deductions for
pay period

12 Any

13 TRS

payroll taxes

tem 12 also reflects the union dues you are paying.

If you have opted to contribute to CSAs political
action campaign, it is reflected here as well. If you
are unaware of what this is, or if you have questions
about CSAs PAC, please speak with your field director
or assistant director. Participation helps CSA support
elected officials who support our issues, and helps
insure that your voice is heard. Some of you may be
surprised upon reviewing Item 12 to see that youre
still contributing to the UFT COPE. If you do not wish
to continue paying into this, you must file a written
form requesting that this deduction end. Should you
need this form, please contact me for it. (See contact
information below.) Item 13 is your contribution to
the pension plan.
Last, but not least: If you owe additional taxes this
year, you might want adjust your deductions. After
discussing this with your financial advisor, you can
obtain the appropriate form from the DOE website.

7 What
you take
home

11 Two-

other
deductions
including
loans, dues
or PAC
donations

3 Federal and

state and the city. Your two-week gross income is

reflected in Item 11, called your recurring gross
income. (It probably matches item 2, your total earnings for the pay period.) Item 12 reflects any other
deductions. If you have a TRS pension or TDA loan it
is noted here. Remember: The amount that you owe
should decrease each check. Make sure your payments have been taken into account!

12
16
165

Cumulative
Absence
Reserve
(CAR) and
annual
leave
balance

Contribution
to taxdeferred
annuity

n Your paycheck stub contains a great deal of information. Review your it periodically to ensure that your pay is correct, that you are being properly
credited for any loan payments and that the amount of annual leave is correct as well.

March 2012