How Many Duty Calendars Do
You Need?
TASB HR Services
TASPA Winter Conference 2013
Luz Cadena, Compensation Consultant
Cindy Clegg, Director HR Services
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Quick Poll
How many duty calendars does your district
have?
a. 5 or less
b. 6 to 10
c. 10 to 20
d. More than 20
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Why Do We Do This?
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To justify pay increases or decreases
Leftover from old state funding system
Leftover from old laws
Culture of “daily wage earners”
Payroll likes it
Actual work needs??
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Perceptions About Pay Among
Educators
• Paid based on days
• Receive no paid time-off
• More days = more money
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Salary Defined
• Fixed sum paid for the value of services
performed
• Exempt personnel under FLSA must be paid
on a salary basis
• Shortest period of payment which will meet
salary basis requirement is a week FLSA Regulations
(29 C.F.R. §54.117 (a))
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Salary Earners vs. Wage Earners
• FLSA distinguishes production workers from
knowledge workers
• Production workers are paid on the basis of
time while knowledge workers are paid on the
basis of total value
• Knowledge workers do professional,
administrative, and executive work
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Duty Day Landmines
Kelley vs. North East ISD
• Employee signed 10-month contract
• Employee required to work graduation June 4th
– School calendar work schedule August 7 - June 1st
• Teacher Salary Schedule (posted on internet) based
on 187 days (did not state minimum number of days)
• District stated June 4th was within 10-month
contract
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Court Decision
• Contract states the employee should work 10months
– Posted salary schedule defined this as 187 days
• Working graduation was on the 188th day
• Court found the district should pay for one
additional day
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Quick Poll
Most frequent number of duty days for a 12month calendar?
226
Others?
230, 240, 254, 260, 261
Highest?
266
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Standard Work Calendar Outside
Education
• 260 workdays in a 12-month salary period
• Average time-off benefits for salaried employees
– 10 holidays
– 3 weeks of vacation leave per year
• 25 days off
– 235 actual work days
• Days not worked considered paid time-off benefits
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Teachers
• Most teachers work 187 days out of a 10month salary period
– Average 216 workdays in a 10-month salary period
– 29 days off
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Duty Calendar Comparisons
• Duty days vary widely between districts and
between different positions within districts
– Elementary Principal
• Least duty days 202
• Most duty days 254
• Most frequently reported duty days 226
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Duty Calendar Comparisons – Cont’d
– Elementary Counselor
• Least duty days
187
• Most duty days
226
• Most frequently reported duty days 207
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Duty Calendar Comparisons – Cont’d
– Diagnostician
• Least duty days 185
• Most duty days 220
• Most frequently reported duty days 197
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
State Laws And Rules About Pay
• State law requires teachers, librarians, nurses
(RNs) and counselors to be paid minimum
monthly salary
• No statutory entitlement to a daily rate of pay
(TEC 21.401)
• No minimum days of service required by the
state for 11- and 12-month employees
• Districts define required start and end work
dates
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reasons Not to Use Daily Rates
• Creates an entitlement expectation to
extension of daily rate
• Leads to manipulation of duty days for more
pay
• Leads to inconsistencies in time-off benefits
• Exempt employees must be paid a salary basis
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Did Pay Go Up or Down?
Teacher (187 / 10)
Asst Principal (207/11)
Impact
Per year
$52,500
$57,750
$5,000 increase
(10%)
Per day
$280.75
$278.99
Decrease?
$4,812
Increase?
Per check $4,375
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
How Do We Effect Change?
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Who has made changes?
How do you change a culture of entitlement?
How to communicate in new ways?
Begin with low-hanging fruit.
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.
Happy Holidays
from TASB HR Services
© 2013 Texas Association of School Boards, Inc. All rights reserved.