An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 6 – Wage And Hour Laws

d. Administration Of A School System Or Educational Establishment Employees who are involved in the “overall academic administration” of schools in work directly related to the school’s academic instruction or training satisfy the administrative duties test. 539 Qualifying employees include the head of the educational institution, any assistants responsible for administration of such matters as curriculum, quality and methods of instruction, measuring and testing the learning potential and achievement of students, establishing and maintaining academic and grading standards, and other aspects of the teaching program. In addition, principals and vice principals, high level academic administrators at colleges, department heads at colleges and academic counselors are also covered by the administrative duties exemption. 540 e. Exercise Of Discretion And Independent Judgment A key component to the administrative duties test is that the employee must exercise “discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance.” 541 To meet the requirement, the employee must be involved in the “comparison and the evaluation of possible courses of conduct, and acting or making a decision after the various possibilities have been considered. “The term ‘matters of significance’ refers to the level of importance or consequence of the work performed.” 542 Factors to be considered when determining whether an employee exercises “discretion and independent judgment” include, but are not limited to:  Whether the employee has authority to formulate, affect, interpret, or implement management policies or operating procedures;  Whether the employee carries out major assignments in conducting the operations of the business;  Whether the employee performs work that affects business operations to a substantial degree, even if the employee’s assignments are related to operation of a particular segment of the business;  Whether the employee has authority to waive or deviate from established policies and procedures without prior approval;  Whether the employee has authority to negotiate and bind the company on significant matters;  Whether the employee provides consultation or expert advice to management;  Whether the employee is involved in planning long or short-term business objectives;  Whether the employee investigates and resolves matters of significance on behalf of management; and  Whether the employee represents the company in handling complaints, arbitrating disputes or resolving grievances. 543

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