By Ethan Retan, CSBA Deputy General Counsel
One of the Education Code’s trickiest requirements can be found in Section 45028. This section generally requires certificated employees to be paid uniformly based upon their years of training and years of experience.
In a recent case — George v. Susanville Elementary School District — the Court of Appeal applied these uniformity requirements to a district teacher, Susan George. The district’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) allowed for up to 12 years of experience for “new unit members,” but said nothing about employees who were rehired. In this case, George left the district with 12 years of experience and then taught for an additional two years in another district. George was rehired by Susanville ESD within 39 months, which entitled George to the “restoration” of certain benefits under Education Code Section 44931. Upon rehire, George was credited with only 12 years of teaching experience. The two years George taught outside the district were excluded because, as a rehire, she was not a “new unit member.”
George sued the district, principally alleging that Section 45028 required the district to recognize these additional two years. The trial court found George was incorrect because, under the CBA, she was not a “new unit member” entitled to credit for prior years of teaching. Instead, George was entitled to the same placement she had at her departure, based on Education Code section 44931’s “restoration requirements” for teachers rehired within 39 months.
George appealed. Despite support from CSBA’s Education Legal Alliance (ELA), the Court of Appeal sided with George. The court found the CBA’s language irrelevant, and that, by refusing to recognize George’s two years of teaching experience, the district violated Education Code Section 45208 by paying George a lower salary than other employees with the same years of experience.
Following this decision, CSBA urged members to diligently analyze the schedule placement of all new and returning hires for compliance with Section 45028. And, if there is any doubt, members should contact CSBA’s Legal Services team, or legal counsel, for assistance. For more information on the Susanville case visit the ELA’s 2023 annual report.
