Wage Enhancement – Educators

The total amount of the bonus payment awarded to educators for 2024-2025 program year (September 2024 to August 2025) was $1,000 per round.

Please note: For information about the 2025-26 program year, please refer to the 2025-2026 Wage Enhancement Program Update Memo.

However, many childcare providers are private businesses and it is the responsibility of the childcare provider to determine how their funds are to be managed; therefore, each provider is individually responsible for determining how to manage the taxes for the bonus payments for their site.

The total dollar amount received by teachers may differ from child care center to center depending on how each provider decides to manage their business’s taxes. Ultimately, some teachers may receive a bonus payment of $1,000, while others may receive less.

All childcare providers and teachers are strongly encouraged to contact their tax professional to determine how best to manage taxes on the bonus payment.

If you are unsure how your agency is managing the required taxes for the wage enhancement bonus payments, you are encouraged to consult your center’s director or human resources.

Childcare providers submit their employee’s proof of ID and proof of hours worked via a website. Once an Agenda for Children (AFC) Wage Enhancement Verifier reviews and approves each individual document, the childcare provider will receive an email confirming who has been marked as eligible for that particular round and the date of the wage enhancement payment disbursement. Once the childcare provider receives the funds, they will then distribute the funds to their eligible employees.

Eligibility is determined in three month “rounds.” An educator could potentially qualify to receive a payment for each of the three month rounds.

Educators should consult their employer and ask if there is additional documentation or alternative timesheets/pay stubs that can be submitted for review so that their eligibility may be reassessed.

Employers are responsible for distributing the wage enhancement payments after they receive the funds from Agenda for Children. We ask that educators be patient and allow time for their employers to transfer funds.

Yes, you can still receive the payment if you switch your place of employment. Educators will need to have their current employer upload the timesheets/pay stubs from their previous employer. If you are eligible to receive the bonus payment, the current employer will be responsible for disbursing the payment.

Employers are responsible for submitting educator documentation in a timely manner. When you receive the funds depends upon when your employer submits the required documentation, as well as how long it takes for them to process the payments in order for the educator to receive them. Please contact your employer to determine when to expect the bonus payment from each of the individual rounds.

The City of New Orleans Mayor’s Office of Youth and Families has committed $2.4M to improve the retention and recruitment of early childhood educators across the city by providing wage enhancements. Agenda for Children will distribute these funds to eligible early childhood educators employed in Type III early learning programs in Orleans Parish throughout the 2023-24 and 2024-25 program years.

In addition, Agenda For Children has utilized other grants, such as the Early Childhood Education Fund (ECEF) in order to compensate educators for additional rounds, and increase the compensation rate for the 2024-25 program year. Please note: Planning for the 2025-26 program year is currently in progress and wage enhancement amounts and timelines have not yet been fully determined.

It is up to each individual educator to determine how they would like to spend their bonus payment.

We encourage all educators to contact their employer for questions or concerns related to their wage enhancement bonus.

If you have additional questions after speaking with your employer, please contact wageenhancement@noeen.org.