BP 4151/4251/4351 — Employee Compensation

Section: 4000 - Personnel
Status: Active

Adopted: 2019-04-23

Revised: 2024-04-18

Policy text

EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION

In order to recruit and retain employees committed to the district’s goals for student learning, the Governing Board recognizes the importance of offering a competitive compensation package which includes salaries and health and welfare benefits.

The Board shall adopt separate salary schedules for certificated, classified, and supervisory and administrative personnel. These schedules shall comply with law and collective bargaining agreements and shall be printed and made available for review at the district office.

Each certificated employee, except an employee in an administrative or supervisory position, shall be classified on the salary schedule on the basis of uniform allowance for education level and years of experience, unless the Board and employee organization negotiate and mutually agree to a salary schedule based on different criteria. Certificated employees shall not be placed in different classifications on the schedule, nor paid different salaries, solely on the basis of the grade levels at which they teach.

Salary schedules for staff who are not a part of a bargaining unit shall be determined by the Board at the recommendation of the Superintendent or designee.

The Board shall determine the frequency and schedule of salary payments, including whether payments for employees who work less than 12 months per year will be made over the course of the school year or in equal installments over the calendar year.

In extraordinary circumstances or emergency situations, the Board may determine to continue to compensate employees during periods of extended closure or disruption of normal district operations when permitted by law and consistent with collective bargaining agreements and memoranda of understanding.

The Superintendent or designee shall post a notice explaining the Fair Labor Standards Act’s wage and hour provisions in a conspicuous place at each work site.

Overtime Compensation

District employees shall be paid an overtime rate of not less than one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for any hours worked in excess of eight hours in one day or 40 hours in one work week, or twice their regular rate of pay for any hours worked in excess of 12 hours in one day or eight hours on the seventh consecutive day of work. However, teachers, school administrators and other employees in positions established by the Board as executive, administrative, or professional shall be exempt from overtime rules. Also exempt from overtime are those classes of employees that the Board specifically finds to be subject to fluctuations in daily working hours not susceptible to administrative control, such as security patrol and recreation classes, but shall not include food service and transportation classes. (Educ. Code 45127.)

For each nonexempt employee, the Superintendent or designee shall maintain records of the employee’s wages, hours, and other information specified in 29 CFR 516.5-516.6.

Wage Overpayment

If the district determines an employee has been overpaid, the district shall notify the employee in writing of the overpayment, afford the employee an opportunity to respond before commencing any recoupment actions, and inform the employee of the employee’s rights to dispute the existence or amount of the claimed overpayment. If the employee agrees there was an overpayment in the claimed amount, reimbursement shall be made to the district through one of the methods described in Education Code 44042.5 as mutually agreed upon by the employee and the district.

If a mutual agreement on a method of reimbursement is not reached, within 30 days of the employee verifying the overpayment amount, the district shall recoup the overpayment through payroll deductions in accordance with Education Code 44042.5.

If the employee does not respond or disputes the existence or amount of the district’s claimed overpayment, the district shall, with board approval, initiate a legal action to recover the overpayment.

If the employee separates from the district before the overpayment is fully repaid, the district shall withhold the remaining balance due from any money owed to the employee upon separation, provided that the state minimum wage is still paid to the employee as required by Education Code 44042.5. The Superintendent or designee may consult with legal counsel to calculate the amount to withhold.

If an outstanding overpayment balance still remains, the district shall, with Board approval, exercise any legal means to recover the remaining amount owed by the employee.

Legal action to recover any overpayment under this policy shall be initiated within three years from the date of the overpayment, which for leave credits is the date that the employee receives compensation in exchange for leave erroneously credited to the employee.

(Replaced BP 4403 and 4404)