Name that Section - Frequently Used Education Code and Title 5 Sections for Community College Districts

ii. Requirements for Certification of Short-Term Employee Assignments There are several steps that districts must take before hiring employees on a short-term basis. First, as discussed above, districts must ensure the following:

 The service to be done is one that once completed will NOT:



Be extended; or



Needed on a continuing basis; AND

 The employee will be working less than 75% of the college year (or 195 working days, including holidays, sick leave, vacation, and other leaves of absence.)  Additionally, before a short-term employee may be hired, certain requirements for certification by the governing board must be met. This certification by the governing board must take place at a regularly scheduled board meeting. With regard to short term employee assignments, the Board must:

 Specify the service required to be performed by the employee, and



Certify the ending date of service.

The ending date may be shortened or extended by the governing board, but cannot exceed 75% of the college year.

Failure to comply with the requirements for certification of short-term employee assignments will result in those employees being designated as classified employees. Categorically Funded Positions: The Attorney General has concluded that teacher aides, whose salaries are paid from federal funds under a specific federal project, do not come within any of the positions which may be excluded under this section, and therefore must be included in the [merit-system] classified service. 71

LCW Practice Advisor

iii. Violations Are a Frequent Source of Liability The hiring of “short-term employees” is one of the most hotly contested and difficult issues facing community college districts. Indeed, violations of this provision are a frequent source of liability and have resulted in millions of dollars in settlements. The most frequently violated requirement—and most often resisted—is that the service, once completed, will not be extended or needed on a continuing basis. This means, for example, that districts cannot continually hire seasonal financial aid clerks, admissions, clerks, bookstore clerks, and instructional aides. Instead of seasonal temporary employment, these employees must be given permanent part-time employee status.

In the short run, it may be seem less costly to districts to continue with their practices of seasonal temporary employment. But following the law and complying with the Education Code will in the long run save districts from the possibility of facing even more costly liability.

LCW Practice Advisor

Name that Section: Frequently Used Education Code and Title 5 Sections for Community College Districts ©2020 (c) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 30