HR Extras

Districts must abide by new EEOC,
ARRA posting requirements

There are two new federal notices that districts must post in conspicuous places in the workplace.

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), effective Nov. 21, 2009, protects employees from discrimination on the basis of genetic information. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has revised its “Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law” poster to include information on genetic discrimination and changes resulting from the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008. Compliance with the new requirement can be achieved by placing a supplemental notice alongside your current federal work-site posters. Notices in Spanish, Arabic, and Chinese will be available for order  from the EEOC before the Nov. 21 effective date.
 
The second requirement applies to districts that are receiving federal stimulus funds. Districts are required under Section 1553 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to provide employees with notice of whistleblower protection. This posting should also be displayed alongside your current federal posters.

HR Services expects to update our federal posters to include the GINA provisions and reflect all other federal mandates. Information will be sent to members as soon as new posters are available. For now, print this file with both notices  and post them with your federal posters. 

If you have any questions, please contact HR Services at 800-580-7782 or hrservices@tasb.org

Commissioner: districts can change contracts of professionals, noncertified administrators

As districts begin preparing for the contract renewal process, HR leaders should be aware that a recent commissioner’s ruling allows districts to change the contracts of noncertified professionals. Districts can either change the type of contract they offer or change professionals who aren’t certified to at-will employees without a contract. The ruling makes it clear that a district that wants to discontinue issuing a Chapter 21 contract to a noncertified administrator or professional can do so without having to go through the nonrenewal or termination procedures required by the Texas Education Code.

The March 2009 decision held that a noncertified administrator who was employed under a Chapter 21 contract did not have the right to be employed under the same type of contract in the following school year (Harris v Royse City ISD, Docket No. 057-R1-0506). The only right the administrator had was to be employed in the same professional capacity.

This decision further clarifies that statutory entitlement to a Chapter 21 contract only applies to a classroom teacher or other full-time certified professionals who are required to hold a certificate issued by the State Board for Educator Certification.

Teaching tops the list of jobs 2009 college graduates were likely to be offered

The Fall 2009 Salary Survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE)  puts teaching at the top of the list of jobs college graduates were likely to be offered.

Teaching has consistently been an important opportunity for college grads, though private sector opportunities held the list’s top spot until 2009, when teaching moved up on the list. From 2002 to 2007, management trainee or sales positions held the top spot.

The shift from private to public sector opportunities could have ramifications for the salaries for new grads because public sector jobs typically pay less than private sector jobs. In fact, the average starting salary offer to college grads fell this year. The salary offer to a 2009 bachelor’s degree graduate is $48,633, 1.2 percent less than the $49,224 average offer for the same graduate from the class of 2008.