FILE: GBDA
EMPLOYMENT OF RETIRED PERSONNEL
The Superintendent, or principal, with the approval of the Superintendent, may employ retired employees under certain conditions; however, an employee whose retirement has been accepted shall not be guaranteed any position/employment with the School Board.
CERTIFIED PERSONNEL
Certified personnel who are members of the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana (TRSL) who have retired and are rehired shall be designated as either a retired teacher or retired member, as provided below:
Retired Teachers
A retired teacher is:
Any teacher who returns to active service as a full-time or part-time classroom teacher in grades K-12 in a critical shortage area, or
A retiree who returns to active service as a full-time certified speech therapist, speech pathologist, or audiologist whose position requires a valid Louisiana ancillary certificate where the shortage exists, or
A retired employee who has returned to active employment service covered by La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §11:710 on or before June 30, 2010.
A retired member who retired on or after May 1, 2009, and on or before June 30, 2010, and who returns to active employment service to a position requiring a valid Louisiana teaching certificate or a valid Louisiana ancillary certificate.
A retired employee who returns to active employment service as a substitute classroom teacher who teaches any student in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.
A retired employee who holds an advanced degree in speech therapy, speech pathology, or audiology.
A retired employee who has a valid Louisiana teaching certificate who returns to active employment service who is assigned the professional activities of instructing adults through an adult education or literacy program administered by the School Board.
Critical shortage area shall mean any shortage of certified teachers existing in a subject area that has been certified by both the Superintendent and personnel director to Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) and the Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana.
Classroom teacher shall mean any employee whose position requires a valid Louisiana teaching certificate and who is assigned activities of instructing students in classroom courses for which daily attendance figures are kept, including school classroom, home or hospital settings or other learning situations that may be delivered inside or outside the classroom or in other teacher-student settings.
Substitute classroom teacher shall mean a classroom teacher employed in a temporary capacity to fill the position of another classroom teacher who is unavailable to teach for any reason.
Prior to making such certification of critical shortage for any full-time teaching position, the School Board shall be required to advertise in the School Board’s official journal, on two (2) separate occasions, notice that a shortage of certified teachers exists and the positions to be filled. If a certified applicant who is not a retiree applies for an advertised position, such person shall be hired before any certified retired teacher is employed, unless fewer than three (3) teachers have applied for the position each of whom are certified in the critical shortage area being filled.
In addition, a letter of recommendation from the principal of the school or facility from which he/she retired must accompany any such application and shall be a prerequisite for reemployment. The School Board requires the employee to complete the twelve (12) month waiting period referenced in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §11:710. Any deviation from the 12-month waiting period shall be handled on a case-by-case basis.
An employee who retires from the Plaquemines Parish School Board and who desires to become reemployed should notify the Human Resources Department of his/her desire to do so, and is responsible for keeping the Human Resources Department up-to-date on current address and telephone contact numbers.
The salary of any retired teacher who is reemployed shall be based on the salary schedule which accounts for all prior years of teaching service and pertinent experience. The earnings of a retired teacher reemployed as a substitute classroom teacher or adult education instructor may result in a reduction in retirement benefits received, in accordance with statutory provisions.
Whenever a retiree returns to active service, the School Board shall, within thirty (30) days thereafter, notify the TRSL in writing of such employment, the date of reemployment, and a determination as to whether the person is a retired teacher or retired member. Other reports shall be submitted as required by state law.
Retired Members
A retired member is any person who is a member of the Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana and who after being reemployed, is not classified as a retired teacher. A retired member, once reemployed, shall have his/her retirement benefits suspended for the duration of reemployment, even if such employment is based on a contract, and shall receive no additional service credit nor accrue any additional retirement benefits.
Additional Guidelines
State and federal legislation has imposed stringent restrictions upon the qualifications required for classroom teachers. Consequently, the recruitment and retention of teachers whose qualifications meet or exceed the mandates of law will become more difficult. Therefore, in order to select only the most competent classroom instructors who meet and/or exceed the standards of federal and state law, and to fill positions of critical shortage, the employment of a retired teacher or other member of the Louisiana Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana (TRSL) by the Plaquemines Parish School Board shall be subject to the following:
The retiree must be certified/qualified in an area of critical need as verified by the Superintendent.
The job application process will be the same for a retiree as for any other applicant.
All appointments must be approved by the principal and Superintendent.
All appointments must be in accordance with laws affecting the Louisiana Teacher Retirement Program and the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP).
The status of any retiree who is reemployed shall be the same as any active employee, subject to all applicable rules, procedures, policies and statutes that may apply to all such employees.
The salary of any qualified retiree who is hired as a full-time classroom teacher shall be based on the salary schedule that accounts for all prior years of service and pertinent experience.
The retirement of an employee prior to his/her re-employment as a retiree shall constitute a break in his/her service with the School Board for purposes of tenure and sabbatical leave. The retiree shall not be allowed to carry forward annual leave days accumulated by him/her as of the date of his/her retirement, but he/she may carry forward accumulated sick leave days provided that he/she has returned to employment within five (5) years of his/her last employment as a teacher within the school system. A retiree shall have the right to earn additional sick leave and annual leave, if applicable, on the same basis as other similarly situated newly hired employees while a retiree.
The cost of health insurance shall revert back to the rate of an active employee.
Retirement contributions of a retired teacher shall continue to be withheld as required by law.
Return-to-work retirees will lose all tenure and seniority in the Plaquemines Parish School System. They will gain increases only as they accrue to other employees with similar duties and responsibilities.
ADMINISTRATIVE RETURN TO EMPLOYMENT AFTER RETIREMENT
Any employee who formally and officially retires from an administrative or supervisory position shall not be considered for any administrative or supervisory position with the Plaquemines Parish School Board, including the position he/she held at the time or date of retirement. Nothing in this policy shall prohibit a retired administrator or supervisor from applying for a teaching position in an area of critical shortage after a one-year waiting period as per guidelines outline under Retired Teachers, above.
BUS OPERATORS
Bus operators who have retired from the Plaquemines Parish School Board shall not be considered for reemployment as a bus operator.
OTHER NON-CERTIFIED EMPLOYEES
School employees who have retired from the Plaquemines Parish School Board shall only be considered for reemployment in areas of critical shortage or high needs. School employee shall mean any employee of the School Board that is not required to hold a valid teacher’s certificate as a condition of employment or is not a bus operator.
If a retired non-certified employee, other than a bus operator, is reemployed as a full-time, part-time, temporary, or substitute employee, the School Board shall be required to transmit monthly, by the fifteenth (15th) day after the end of the month, a report to the Louisiana School Employees Retirement System (LSERS) with the name, social security number, and the amount of earnings of the retiree during the previous month.
New policy: November 1, 2010
Revised: October 3, 2011
Revised: December 17, 2012
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§11:710, 11:1006, 11:1007, 17:81
Board minutes, 11-1-10, 10-3-11, 12-17-12
Plaquemines Parish School Board