Archive: April 2000

Excess Status
By Steve Kaplan, UniServe Field Organizer

Unit members being placed in excess in the spring "are involuntarily transferred based upon enrollment estimates." (Section 12.7.3) When in excess, you have a number of contractual rights. Among these are:

• Section 12.2.13 - Seniority After May Post and Bid Unit members in excess have "priority consideration" during the July posting period for positions at the same level. A qualified bidder with "priority consideration" must be selected over another qualified bidder without "priority consideration." This right does not apply to the May post.
  
  
• Section 12.7.3.1 - Bumping Rights While the term bumping rights is not in the contract this section does state that unit members being involuntarily transferred may exercise seniority rights to a position in another level or department in which they have taught at least one year in the past five or two years in the past nine. For example, a teacher in excess from the upper grades taught in a lower grade (K-3) two years ago, and is senior to the least senior lower grade teacher, has the right to take the lower grade assignment.
  
  
• Section 12.8.1 - Return Rights When October enrollment justifies, a unit member may be returned to his/her site. While the contract states this is with "the agreement of the Division," the practice has been to offer the position to the affected teacher.
  
  
• Section 12.9.2 - Preparation for Moving Release time should be provided. One day of duty free preparation/orientation time shall be provided at the receiving school.
  
  
• Section 12.9.3 - Custodial Services Custodial services, upon request, shall be made available.