School Board Public Comments
New legislation from our state government in Sacramento is pushing both TVUSD and TVEA to clarify the ramifications of such legislation to TVUSD employees and TVEA members respectively.
AB 1522, effective July 1, 2015 broadens the use of Sick Leave for employees. Per a district bulletin sent to school sites, AB 1522 allows for the diagnosis, care, or treatment of an existing health condition as well as the preventative care for the employee or Family Member.
it is critical that the potential ramifications of a “Family Illness” absence under AB 1522 be communicated with the appearance of Family Illness on the TVUSD AESOP substitute reporting system and the Site Employee Monthly Attendance Report.
TVEA pledges to do so with our own members moving forward. We suggest that TVUSD do this as well through directly communicating with employees.
We have been in ongoing communication with TVUSD to address multiple situations in which TVEA members were unsuspectedly pay docked at a per diem rate for selecting ‘Family Illness” over “Personal Illness”. We are working collaboratively with TVUSD to resolve a handful of previously reported such cases and notify our members of the intricacies involved with AB 1522.
Another new law affecting employee leave is AB 375, addressing the right to up to twelve weeks of substitute differential pay for certificated school employees who take maternity or paternity leave under the California Family Rights Act. The twelve weeks of differential pay is reduced by any fully paid sick leave used during the maternity/paternity leave.
This law signed by Governor Brown on October 1, 2015 became effective January 1, 2016. According to a client news brief by the legal firm Lozano Smith, AB 375 shall not apply to a collective bargaining agreement if it conflicts with a provision of a current agreement.
The local effect for our TVEA members is they are unable to secure the benefits of this legislation for the first eighteen months of its “birth” as the TVUSD/TVEA CBA expires June 30, 2017.
Regardless of the level of legal obligation, some school districts have created MOU'S which address the law immediately. Developing proactive, family friendly policies for TVUSD employees of parenting age is a wise direction this board should encourage this district to pursue.
Thank you
