Presented by Diane Cranley, author of 8 Ways to Create their Fate, this sexual abuse prevention module was developed specifically for charter schools. The objective of this course is to provide employees with information to help combat the devastating emotional and financial impact of sexual misconduct in schools - and to bring about a cultural shift that empowers employees to understand, make note of, and report boundaries violations. This training provides information on best practices, which upon implementation will significantly reduce the risk of students being abused by staff, volunteers, and other students. Learn how to recognize the behavior of predators before any sexual misconduct occurs. Successful completion of this course by each employee satisfies CharterSAFE’s mandatory training requirement.

Duration: 53 minutes

Finding and hiring the right people is often a challenge for charter schools. During our time together during this HR 101 course, we will review the hiring cycle of charter schools, the importance of an accurate job description, sources for recruiting, compliance with both federal and California laws, screening and engaging candidates, interview styles, and strategies for selecting and offering a position to your top candidate. 

At the conclusion of this course we look at how to onboard your new hire to promote long term employee commitment and engagement.

Duration:  55 minutes

Learning Outcomes:

Describe the components and importance of an accurate job description

Understand what being an Equal Opportunity Employer means in terms of both federal and state laws.

Recognize the importance of a recruiting pipeline, and how to source candidates.

Identify best practices for screening and disqualifying applicants

Describe the difference between behavioral, structured, situational and hybrid interview techniques.

Have knowledge of what steps are necessary to identify your top candidate and develop an offer letter.

Understand the importance of a structured onboarding process to “set the stage” for a rewarding employer/employee relationship.

Your charter school has hired the right employees.  Now how do you pay them?  The next step is to understand the complexities surrounding California wage and hour laws and how to properly pay employees.  We will review the complex California labor laws including the various wage orders issued by the California Industrial Welfare Commission, and continue with a review of the definitions of workday, workweek and the state and local jurisdiction minimum wage regulations.  We will explain the duties and responsibilities of an employer to maintain adequate and accurate timekeeping records.  We will discuss the difference between an employee and an independent contractor, and how to handle volunteers and interns.  We will review all required information which needs to be on an employee's wage earning statement (paystub), including an explanation of permissible wage deductions.  And last, we will do a brief overview of when an employee needs to receive a final paycheck.

Duration:  55 minutes

Learning Outcomes:

Review the most common types of employee lawsuits and the result of a national study as well as a 3-1/2 year CharterSAFE claims history review of employee lawsuits.

Understand the key components of federal and California wage and hour laws.

Learn the definitions of workday and workweek, and the state minimum wage as well as local minimum wage ordinances.

Recognize the components of timekeeping and an employer's obligation for record keeping.

Identify the difference between an employee and an independent contractor including the provisions of AB 5 and the "ABC" Test.

Understand how to handle volunteers and interns.

Describe the legal requirements of information that needs to be shown on an employee's wage earning statement (paystub), and the acceptable ways to pay an employee.

Learn the requirements of wage deductions including garnishments and what to do if your charter school overpays an employee - how do you get the monies back?

Know when an employee's final paycheck needs to be provided.

We will continue our discussion of wage and hour laws by focusing on employee classifications for exempt versus non-exempt, and the salary and duties tests for exempt employees.  We will start by reviewing the current California minimum wage structure as well as the consequences of local jurisdiction minimum wage ordinances.  We will discuss the calculation of non-exempt rates of pay including overtime and double time, as well as pay for holidays, weekends, travel time, split shift, makeup time, reporting time and on-call.  We will go over the provisions of compliant meal and rest breaks.  We will discuss the salary and duties tests for exempt classifications and possible legal and financial exposures for misclassifications of exempt employees.  We will also delve into the payroll cycles for different classifications of employees and the consequences of paying employees based on a 10, 11 or 12 month work calendar.  We will discuss the consequences of paying stipends to non-exempt employees and how to create an alternative workweek schedule.  And last, we will focus on our best practice recommendations for compliant wage and hour practices.

Duration:  80 minutes

Learning Outcomes:

Review the most common types of employee lawsuits and the result of a national study as well as a 3-1/2 year CharterSAFE claims history review of employee lawsuits.

Understand the key components of federal and California wage and hour laws.

Learn the difference between exempt and non-exempt employee classifications, and the significance of a job description for exempt positions.

Understand when to use the California state minimum wage or a local jurisdiction minimum wage thresholds to ensure the correct minimum wage rate for a non-exempt employee.

Learn how to calculate a non-exempt employee's overtime and double time rates of pay, and when to apply these rates for hours worked.

Understand what happens when a non-exempt employee works on a holiday, a Saturday or a Sunday and if special rates of pay apply (hint: it's at the discretion of the employer).

Learn what to do if an employee is not paid for hours worked.

Learn to calculate overtime for a non-exempt employee who works 2 different positions with 2 different rates of pay on the same workday.

Identify the provisions of a salaried non-exempt employee and the overtime consequences for this type of classification.

Understand how to manage non-exempt employee travel time, meeting & training time, split shift, makeup time, reporting time and on call status.

Describe the legal requirements of meal and rest breaks.

Learn the requirements of wage deductions including garnishments and what to do if your charter school overpays an employee - how do you get the monies back?

Recognize the various exempt employee classifications at a charter school and how to accurately perform the salary and duties tests for an exempt position.

Identify misclassification exposure.

Describe the various payroll cycles for exempt and non-exempt positions.

Learn why paying stipends to a non-exempt employee requires extra work if overtime or double time was paid during the stipend period.

Learn components of the alternative workweek schedule.

Review our best practice recommendations for compliant wage and hour practices.

Because of the complex nature of leaves, leaves administration, disabilities and reasonable accommodation at the federal and state level, the material will be divided into 2 courses.  HR 106 reviews the aspects of 4 major leaves – Family Medical Leave Act, California Family Rights Act, California Pregnancy Leave, and Workers Compensation Leave.  Understanding which leave of absence applies to your organization is a critical compliance requirement.  Learn about events that could trigger a leave, which employees may be entitled to a leave, the parameters of a leave, and the obligations of the employer and employee. We will discuss various return-to-work scenarios and focus on best practice recommendations.

Duration:  80 minutes

Learning Outcomes:

Learn about Family Medical Leave Act, California Family Rights Act, California Pregnancy Disability and Workers Compensation leaves and how these leaves interact with each other.

Recognize the eligibility requirements to provide an employee with a leave of absence.  

Understand the different parameters of intermittent use of each leave. 

Learn about various state wage replacement programs and employer provided pay which can be used during a leave.

Understand how to manage an employee’s benefit entitlement during each type of leave.

Review return-to-work scenarios and best practice recommendations for compliant leave administration.

Employee handbooks are an important tool to communicate your school’s policies and procedures to all employees.  Over half of employee discipline issues pertain to violations of employee handbook policies and procedures.  CharterSAFE consults with outside counsel each year to update our employee handbook template which is made available to all of our members.  We also provide a summary of the year-over-year changes in the employee handbook.  Please join us for an in-depth review of the CharterSAFE Employee Handbook template for the current school year.

Unemployment Insurance benefits administered by the California Employment Development Department (EDD) may be available to an individual who is unemployed and meets eligibility requirements. By understanding the communications from EDD and how to respond within a specified time period, a school can find ways to proactively manage the unemployment insurance claim process as well as the annual unemployment insurance tax rate assessed by EDD.

Duration:  35 minutes

Civil and respectful behavior in the workplace goes beyond encouraging “please” and “thank you”.   Civility in the workplace supports an employer’s anti-harassment and anti-bullying policies, as well as supporting the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion.  The National Labor Relations Board endorsed workplace civility as providing “common sense” standards of conduct to promote “harmonious interactions and relationships” amongst employees.  We will review aspects of civility and the negative business consequences of uncivil behavior.  We will also discuss 3 types of microaggression and how these acts will have a detrimental impact on a charter school. 

We will provide resources to help a charter school encourage a civil and respectful work environment.  These resources include a civility policy template, employee training handouts, supervisor discipline forms to address uncivil behavior and best practice recommendations to develop professional working relationships amongst your staff.

Duration:  50 minutes

A best practice recommendation for California charter schools is to have Employment Practice Liability Insurance (EPLI) coverage.  Generally speaking, underlying employee relations issues may lead to EPLI claims and employee lawsuits.  This course will explore the components of EPLI coverage offered by CharterSAFE to our members and the types of workplace issues (harassment, discrimination, retaliation, wage & hour violations, etc.) which may lead to EPLI claims and employee lawsuits.  To underscore the need for EPLI coverage and a proactive approach to workplace issues, we will conduct a historic review of EPLI claims filed by CharterSAFE members from 2016 through September 2019.  We will provide an overview of Human Resources support services provided by CharterSAFE to our members (at not cost) which may help reduce future EPLI claims.  And last, we will discuss best practice recommendations to help California charter schools prevent future EPLI claims and employee lawsuits.

Duration:  45 minutes

Charter school leaders wear many different "hats", and the Human Resources function can be a daunting "hat" for many.  From credential monitoring, recruiting talent, benefits, changing labor labors, and everything in between, this course will provide an overview of re-occurring Human Resources functions presented in a month-by-month and quarterly format.  We will offer insight and resources for developing a strategic annual Human Resources plan that will assist in keeping your school successful and compliant throughout the school year!

Duration:  55 minutes