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Administrative Employment and
Contracts:Rights and Expectations
ACCCA 2013 Annual ConferenceFebruary 20, 2013
Presented By:Mary Dowell, Liebert Cassidy Whitmore
John Didion, Rancho Santiago Community College Dist rict
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Overview
• Legal Requirements• Entering Into Contracts • Renewing Contracts • Terminating Administrator • Contractual Provisions
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Entering Into Contracts
• Why a Contract?– Education Code Section 72411(a): Every
educational administrator shall beemployed … by an appointment or contract of up to four years in duration.
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Entering Into a Contract
• Terms and conditions of employment are memorialized in a written agreement signed by the parties
• Board approval required at a regularmeeting of the board
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Renewing a Contract
• The district and the administrator may mutually agree to terminate existing contract and enter into a new contract – Current contract ends on June 30– Contract with new terms and conditions
begins on July 1
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Renewing a Contract
• No contractual provision can provide for an automatic renewal of the contract if there are automatic salary increases that exceed a cost of living adjustment
• Board approval required at a regularmeeting of the board
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Renewing a Contract
• Automatic renewal by operation of law – If no notice of non-renewal is provided, the
administrator is reemployed for a term of the same duration that was just completed� But : the contract itself can state that it only renews
for one year.
– No statutory or contractual right to an administrative position
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Terminating a Contract
• Mutual agreement• Resignation
– Terms specified in contract – Must provide appropriate notice as specified
in contract
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Terminating a Contract
• Non-renewal of contract– For contracts longer than a year:
� At least 6 months notice prior to expiration of contract; or
� A time period agreed to in the contract (e.g. by March 15)
– For contracts less than a year, notice of non-renewal must be given on or before March 15
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Terminating a Contract
• Without cause– Terms specified in contract– Severance pay is limited to the monthly
salary owed for the remainder of the contract– Capped at a maximum of 18 months, but no
right to have it be 18 months
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Terminating a Contract
• For cause– Administrators without tenure as a faculty
member may be terminated for cause pursuant to the terms of the contract, if any
– Administrators with tenure as a faculty member must be dismissed in accordance with Education Code 87732
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Retreat Rights – Academics Only
• No retreat rights for an administrator dismissed for cause
• Administrator with tenure as a faculty member who has been released without cause may return to a faculty position
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Retreat Rights
• Academic administrator without tenure as a faculty member may become a first-year probationary faculty member– Termination must not be for cause– District must have a process to evaluate whether
administrator meets minimum qualifications, developed with Faculty Senate
– Administrator must have completed at least 2 years of satisfactory service
– A first-year probationary position must be available
Common Contractual Provisions
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Essential Provisions
• Term/Duration– Governs the length of the contract– Administrator contracts may be up to 4 years
in duration– Limitations on CalSTRS annuitants:
� $31,020 annual post-retirement earnings limit (2011-12)
� Beginning in 2013, there is a180-day waiting period prior to being employed regardless of the age of the annuitant
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Essential Provisions
• Salary– Base salary– COLA– Grounds for salary increases
• Duties/Responsibilities– Defines the job responsibilities of the
position
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Essential Provisions
• Evaluation– Explains the standards, timing, and process
for performance evaluations
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Essential Provisions
• Fringe benefits– Medical & dental insurance– Life insurance– Leaves– Retirement plans
• Expense allowance/Reimbursement
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Essential Provisions
• Termination – Resignation, for cause, without cause, non-
renewal
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Essential Provisions
• Applicable law– Defines what law applies to interpret and
enforce the contract (e.g. California law)– May define where parties may sue to
enforce the contract (e.g. Alameda County)
• Severability/Savings Clause– If one term of the contract is invalidated by a
court, the rest of the contract is still enforceable
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Essential Provisions
• Complete/Entire Agreement– Contract is a final expression of the
agreement between the parties– No other terms or conditions exist outside
what is written in the contract
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Other Optional Provisions
• Arbitration/Mediation Clause• Medical Examinations• Outside Employment/Professional
Activities• Non-Compete Clause• Non-Recruiting Clause
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New Requirements
• If the following benefits are provided, the contract must contain provisions requiring an administrator to reimburse the district for these costs if he/she is convicted of a crime involving an abuse of his/her position:– Paid leave pending an investigation– Funds for the legal criminal defense of the
administrator– Any cash settlement received related to the
termination of the employment contract
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Effect of PEPRA
• Post-retirement earnings limit for STRS• 960 hour limit for PERS
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Thank you!
Mary DowellPartner | Los Angeles Office
Liebert Cassidy Whitmore
310-981-2000 | [email protected]
John DidionExecutive Vice Chancellor, Human Resources and Educational Services
Rancho Santiago Community College District
714-480-7489 | [email protected]