HONOLULU (KHON2) -- Hawaii public school teachers have been in session for over a month, but some teachers said they are still not getting paid. Get Hawaii's latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You KHON2's newsroom fielded several calls from teachers who were expecting paychecks that included backpay on Friday, Sept. 20, but they are still waiting. It is Lee Mauk's first year teaching in Hawaii after a career in California and Kansas, but he is a month behind on Hawaii Department of Education paychecks. Mauk was given a $2,000 zero-interest loan for his August Pay and officials said two of his paychecks for September would clear on Friday, Sept. 20. Hawaii teachers not paid on-time to receive ʻdamage paymentsʻ "So then I'm like, 'Okay, well, maybe, maybe since they gave this loan, maybe they're going to give it to me all on September 20th, right? The two payments.' No, nothing," said Lee Mauk, 8th grade science teacher at William P. Jarrett Middle School. "And we're supposed to give that loan back in full by this pay period, which I have no plan of doing that." The HDOE informed the Teachers' Union and the House Education Committee on Thursday, Sept. 19 that 419 public school teachers and 1,000 charter school teachers have been offered placeholder payments for their first two paychecks that must be paid back when their actual paychecks arrive. "My whole thing is, how is it possible that we can pay them a supplemental paycheck, but not actually pay them their actual paycheck? It doesn't make sense," said Rep. Diamond Garcia of the House Education Committee. "When teachers start the job, their background checks should be completed, their license should be verified. All this should be done prior to their start date." HSTA files step 2 grievance with DOE more than 500 teachers remain unpaid DOE officials said progress is being made on the payroll issue, but teachers and lawmakers still have unanswered questions. "When you have a negative deficit," Mauk said. "My credit score has already gone down, I had to ask for an extension for my rent." Never in my life, never in my life, when I talked to my old colleagues back in California and back in Kansas, They literally cannot believe, literally cannot believe these people are this incompetent.Lee Mauk, William P. Jarrett Middle School 8th grade science teacher "Exactly why did this happen, why was their onboarding taking so long," Rep. Garcia said. "Who's not doing their job?" Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news The Hawaii State Teachers Union said they're looking into the issue, the Department of Education said they are not aware of additional delays but said they will look into every teacher who reaches out to them with payroll issues. Teachers can email [email protected] with any further concerns, or call 808-784-6200.