Senate BillNo. 381


Introduced by Senator Huff

February 24, 2015


An act to amend Section 44955 of the Education Code, relating to school employees.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 381, as introduced, Huff. School employees: reduction in workforce: deviation from order of seniority.

Under existing law, when school employees are terminated pursuant to a reduction in workforce, a school district is required to terminate the employees in order of seniority. Existing law authorizes a school district to deviate from the order of seniority for those purposes for specified reasons, including the school district demonstrating a specified need for personnel to teach a specific course or course of study and the certificated employee having special training and experience necessary to teach that course or course of study, which others with more seniority do not possess.

This bill would authorize that the course or course of study, that may allow a school district to deviate from terminating school employees in order of seniority, include career technical education and career pathway programs, and would further authorize that a school district may deviate from the order of seniority to comply with the school district’s local control and accountability plan, as specified.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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SECTION 1.  

Section 44955 of the Education Code is amended
2to read:

3

44955.  

(a) begin deleteNo end deletebegin insertA end insertpermanent employee shallbegin insert notend insert be deprived
4of his or her position for causes other than those specified in
5Sections 44907 and 44923, and Sections 44932 to 44947, inclusive,
6andbegin delete noend deletebegin insert aend insert probationary employee shallbegin insert notend insert be deprived of his or
7her position for cause other than as specified in Sections 44948 to
844949, inclusive.

9(b) begin deleteWhenever end deletebegin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertIf end insertinbegin delete anyend deletebegin insert aend insert school year the average daily
10attendance in all of the schools of abegin insert schoolend insert district for the first six
11monthsbegin delete in whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert school is in session shall have declined below
12the corresponding period of either of the previous two school years,
13begin delete wheneverend deletebegin insert ifend insert the governing boardbegin insert of a school districtend insert determines
14that attendance inbegin delete aend deletebegin insert the schoolend insert district will decline in the following
15year as a result of the termination of an interdistrict tuition
16agreement asbegin delete definedend deletebegin insert describedend insert in Section 46304,begin delete wheneverend deletebegin insert ifend insert a
17particular kind of service is to be reduced or discontinued not later
18than the beginning of the following school year, orbegin delete wheneverend deletebegin insert ifend insert
19 the amendment of state law requires the modification of curriculum,
20andbegin delete when in the opinion ofend deletebegin insert ifend insert the governing board of thebegin insert schoolend insert
21 districtbegin insert determinesend insert itbegin delete shall have becomeend delete necessary by reason of
22any of these conditions to decrease the number of permanent
23employees in thebegin insert schoolend insert district, the governing boardbegin insert of the school
24districtend insert
may terminate the services of not more than a
25corresponding percentage of the certificated employees of the
26begin insert schoolend insert district, permanent as well as probationary, at the close of
27the school year. Except as otherwise provided by statute, the
28services ofbegin delete noend deletebegin insert aend insert permanent employeebegin delete mayend deletebegin insert shall notend insert be terminated
29underbegin delete the provisions ofend delete this section whilebegin delete anyend deletebegin insert aend insert probationary
30employee, or any other employee with less seniority, is retained
31to render a servicebegin delete which saidend deletebegin insert that theend insert permanent employee is
32certificated and competent to render.

begin delete

33 In

end delete

34begin insert(2)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertInend insert computing a decline in average daily attendance for
35purposes of thisbegin delete sectionend deletebegin insert subdivisionend insert for a newly formed or
36reorganized school district, each school of thebegin insert schoolend insert district shall
37be deemed to have been a school of the newly formed or
P3    1reorganizedbegin insert schoolend insert district for both of the two previous school
2years.

begin delete

3 As

end delete

4begin insert(3)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertAsend insert between employees who first rendered paid service to
5thebegin insert schoolend insert district on the same date, the governing boardbegin insert of the
6school districtend insert
shall determine the order of termination solely on
7the basis of needs of thebegin insert schoolend insert district and thebegin delete students thereof.end delete
8begin insert pupils of the school district.end insert Upon the request ofbegin delete anyend deletebegin insert anend insert employee
9whose order of termination is so determined, the governing board
10begin insert of the school districtend insert shall furnish inbegin delete writingend deletebegin insert writing,end insert no later than
11five daysbegin delete prior toend deletebegin insert beforeend insert the commencement of the hearing held
12in accordance with Section 44949, a statement of the specific
13criteria used in determining the order of termination and the
14application of the criteria in ranking each employee relative to the
15other employees in the group.begin delete Thisend deletebegin insert Theend insert requirement that the
16governing boardbegin insert of the school districtend insert provide, on request, a written
17statement of reasons for determining the order of termination shall
18not be interpreted to give affected employees any legal right or
19interest that would not exist withoutbegin delete such aend deletebegin insert theend insert requirement.

20(c) begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insertNotice ofbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert termination of services shall be given
21beforebegin delete the 15th of May in the manner prescribed inend deletebegin insert May 15
22pursuant toend insert
Section 44949, andbegin insert theend insert services ofbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert thoseend insert
23 employees shall be terminated in the inverse of the order in which
24they were employed, as determined by thebegin insert governingend insert boardbegin insert of the
25school districtend insert
in accordance with the provisions of Sections 44844
26and 44845.begin delete In the event thatend deletebegin insert Ifend insert a permanent or probationary
27employee is not given the notices and a right to a hearing as
28provided for in Section 44949, he or she shall be deemed
29reemployed for the ensuing school year.

begin delete

30 The

end delete

31begin insert(2)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertTheend insert governing boardbegin insert of the school districtend insert shall make
32assignments and reassignments inbegin delete suchend delete a manner that employees
33shall be retained to render any servicebegin delete whichend delete their seniority and
34qualifications entitle them to render. However,begin delete prior toend deletebegin insert beforeend insert
35 assigning or reassigningbegin delete anyend deletebegin insert aend insert certificated employee to teach a
36subjectbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert he or she has not previously taught, and for
37which he or she does not have a teaching credential orbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert
38 is not within the employee’s major area of postsecondary study or
39the equivalent thereof, the governing boardbegin insert of the school districtend insert
P4    1 shall require the employee to pass a subject matter competency
2test in the appropriate subject.

3(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), a school district may
4deviate from terminating a certificated employee in order of
5seniority for either of the following reasons:

6(1) Thebegin insert schoolend insert district demonstrates a specific need for personnel
7to teach a specific course or course of study,begin insert including, but not
8limited to, career technical education or career pathway programs,end insert

9 or to provide services authorized by a services credential with a
10specialization in either pupil personnel services or health for a
11school nurse, and that the certificated employee has special training
12and experience necessary to teach that course or course of study
13or to provide those services,begin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert others with more seniority
14do not possess.

15(2) For purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with
16constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws.

begin insert

17(3) For purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with
18the school district’s local control and accountability plan.

end insert


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