Public School Teacher Rights in California: Layoffs, Tenure, Leave

As a California public school teacher, most of your job rights come from the Education Code, the state’s public school bargaining law and your union contract, not from the overtime and break rules that cover private-sector workers. Those laws give you a path to permanent status after two years, a March 15 notice and a hearing before any end-of-year layoff, 10 days of sick leave a year if you work full time, with differential pay after it runs out, and protection when you report wrongdoing, act through your union or get hurt at school.

This guide is for K–12 teachers employed by California school districts and county offices of education. Private and charter school teachers should read our private and charter school teacher guide, because many district rules below do not apply there. Aides, paraeducators and other non-credentialed staff should read our classified school employee guide; city and county workers, our public employee rights guide.

1. Which pay rules apply to public school teachers?

California’s wage orders mostly do not reach school districts. Section 1(B) of the orders says that for employees directly employed by the state or any political subdivision, only sections 1, 2, 4, 10 and 20 apply (Wage Order 4 is an example). Section 4 is the minimum wage; the overtime, meal period and rest period sections are not on that list. The order that names teaching among its licensed professions is Wage Order 4; our wage orders guide explains how orders are matched to jobs.

Federal law does not add overtime for teachers. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), a teacher whose primary duty is teaching in an educational establishment is exempt, and the U.S. Department of Labor says the salary requirements “do not apply to bona fide teachers.”

Your pay comes from the district’s salary schedule and your collective bargaining agreement, which usually controls extra-duty pay for coaching, extra periods and summer school. You enforce it through the grievance process. Education Code 44813 also tells districts to allow each full-time teacher in a regular day school with two or more teachers one duty-free lunch period each day, with its length, timing and conditions set by State Board of Education regulations. Education Code 44814 adds that districts may use other suitable staff to supervise students so teachers get that break. Your contract may add details.

Key fact

2. Probationary and permanent status (“tenure”)

In a district with an average daily attendance of 250 or more, a teacher who completes two complete consecutive school years in a position requiring certification, and is reelected for the next year, becomes a permanent employee at the start of that year (Education Code 44929.21(b)). The district must tell you by March 15 of your second year whether you will be reelected. If it does not notify you by then, you are deemed reelected.

Once you are permanent, the district can dismiss you only for causes listed in Education Code 44932, such as unprofessional conduct, unsatisfactory performance, dishonesty, evident unfitness for service, or persistent violation of school laws. The process has built-in protections:

• A chance to improve. Unprofessional-conduct charges require written notice at least 45 calendar days before filing; unsatisfactory-performance charges require 90 calendar days, or notice before the last quarter of the school year if the district acts during it. The notice must give specific instances (Education Code 44938).
• A hearing. A dismissal or suspension takes effect 30 days after the notice of intent is served unless you demand a hearing (Education Code 44934).
• A panel that includes teachers. Unless both sides agree to a single judge, a Commission on Professional Competence hears the case: one member you choose, one the district chooses, and an administrative law judge. The hearing generally must start within six months of your demand (Education Code 44944).

Under Education Code 44031, derogatory material cannot go into your personnel file until you have notice and a chance to review and comment on it, and you may attach your own response.

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3. March 15 layoff notices, seniority and recall

A district can lay off certificated staff at the end of a school year only for reasons the Education Code allows: a drop in average daily attendance, the end of an interdistrict tuition agreement, a particular kind of service being reduced or discontinued, or a state law change that requires curriculum changes (Education Code 44955(b)). The steps follow a fixed calendar.

When	What happens	Law
By March 15	The superintendent must notify you and the board in writing that non-reemployment is recommended, with the reasons. This is a preliminary notice, not a final decision.	Ed. Code 44949(a)
By the date in the notice (at least 7 days after service)	Request a hearing in writing. If you miss the date, you waive the hearing.	Ed. Code 44949(b)
By May 7	An administrative law judge issues a proposed decision; the board decides.	Ed. Code 44949(c)
Before May 15	Final layoff notice. Without proper notice and hearing rights, you are deemed reemployed for the next year.	Ed. Code 44955(c)

Seniority. Layoffs go in reverse order of hire. A permanent teacher cannot be laid off while a probationary or less-senior employee is kept to provide a service the permanent teacher is certificated and competent to provide. A district may “skip” a junior teacher only for a specific course or service need requiring special training and experience, or to comply with equal protection requirements (Education Code 44955(d)).

Summer budget layoffs. Education Code 44955.5 allows layoffs between five days after the state Budget Act and August 15 if the district’s per-pupil funding did not rise by at least 2 percent, on a schedule the board adopts. The statute itself makes this window inoperative in some years; in the current text, the most recent is July 1, 2024, through July 1, 2025.

Recall. A laid-off permanent teacher has a preferred right to reappointment for 39 months and first chance at substitute work in seniority order (Education Code 44956).

Unemployment. Under Unemployment Insurance Code 1253.3(b), teachers generally cannot collect benefits for the summer break if they have a contract or “reasonable assurance” of work next year. If you were laid off with no offer to return, you can file a claim; EDD decides eligibility. See unemployment after a job loss.

4. Sick leave, differential pay and family leave

A full-time teacher gets 10 days of paid sick leave each school year, prorated if you work fewer than five days a week. You do not have to accrue it first, unused days carry over, and you may use it for pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth and recovery (Education Code 44978).

When your sick leave, including accumulated days, runs out and you are still out for illness or injury, Education Code 44977 gives you up to five school months of differential pay for each illness or accident. The district may deduct no more than what it actually pays your substitute (or would have paid one), and it must make every reasonable effort to hire a substitute.

💡 Example: Ms. Alvarez, a hypothetical high school teacher, earns $7,800 a month. She has used all her sick leave and misses a full month recovering from surgery. Her substitute is paid $210 a day for 20 days, or $4,200. The district can deduct no more than $4,200, so she should receive at least $7,800 − $4,200 = $3,600 for that month. (Hypothetical.)

• Parental leave. You may use sick leave for up to 12 workweeks of leave for a birth, adoption or foster placement. After sick leave runs out, you receive at least 50 percent of your regular salary for the rest of the 12 workweeks. CFRA’s 1,250-hour rule does not apply, and the leave runs at the same time as CFRA leave (Education Code 44977.5).
• Job-protected leave. School districts are employers under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), so CFRA leave, pregnancy disability leave and disability accommodation apply. See FMLA and CFRA leave rights and pregnancy disability leave.
• Work injuries. Districts must provide at least 60 days of industrial accident or illness leave per fiscal year for the same injury; salary plus temporary disability may not exceed full salary (Education Code 44984).

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5. Union rights and grievances

The Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA), Government Code 3540 and following, covers public school employees. You may form, join and take part in the employee organization of your choice and present grievances at any time (Government Code 3543). The district may not threaten or impose reprisals, discriminate against you, or interfere with those rights, and it must bargain in good faith with your union (Government Code 3543.5).

The Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) enforces EERA. An unfair practice charge must be filed within six months of the conduct. If your contract’s grievance process covers the dispute, you generally must use it first, and the six months are paused while you do (Government Code 3541.5(a)). PERB does not enforce discrimination laws.

By the numbers39 months

6. Pay problems we see in this job

Practice	Is it legal?	Law
Coaching, extra periods or summer school without the stipend your contract promises	Usually a contract violation you can grieve	Your collective bargaining agreement; Gov. Code 3543(b)
Deducting more than the substitute’s pay during differential pay	No	Ed. Code 44977
Paying under 50% of salary for the rest of a 12-week parental leave after sick leave runs out	No	Ed. Code 44977.5
A negative memo placed in your file without notice and a chance to respond	No	Ed. Code 44031(b)
Lunch supervision every day, so you never get a duty-free lunch	Often not; Ed. Code 44813 calls for a daily duty-free lunch, so check State Board rules and your contract	Ed. Code 44813, 44814
No hourly overtime for work past the contract day	Generally legal for teachers unless your contract pays extra	FLSA teacher exemption

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7. Safety, injuries and workers’ compensation

School districts are employers under the workers’ compensation laws, so injuries from a fall, a lifting strain or a student assault can be covered. Report the injury to your district in writing within 30 days (Labor Code 5400). Once the district knows, it must give you a claim form within one working day (Labor Code §5401). The general deadline to start a claim is one year (Labor Code §5405).

If a pupil attacks, assaults or physically threatens you, Education Code 44014 says you and your supervisor must promptly report it to law enforcement, and no one may impede that report or punish you for making it. Since July 1, 2024, Labor Code 6401.9 has required employers, with listed exceptions, to keep a written workplace violence prevention plan that prohibits retaliation for reports; school districts are not on that exception list. See workers’ comp for workplace assaults.

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8. Retaliation, discrimination and whistleblowing

Protected activity	Protection	Law
Reporting fraud, waste, illegal orders or a serious health or safety threat	No reprisal; contributing-factor standard	Ed. Code 44112–44114; Labor Code 1102.5 (Labor Code 1106 covers school district employees)
Union activity, grievances, bargaining	No reprisal or interference	Gov. Code 3543.5
Reporting a student assault to police	No sanctions for reporting	Ed. Code 44014(d)
Complaining about unsafe conditions	No discharge or discrimination	Labor Code 6310
Filing a workers’ comp claim	No discrimination for claiming benefits	Labor Code 132a
Opposing discrimination or harassment, or asking for accommodation or CFRA leave	No retaliation	Gov. Code 12940; Gov. Code 12945.2

The Education Code whistleblower law has its own step: to sue for damages under Education Code 44114, you must first file a copy of your written retaliation complaint, with a sworn statement, with local law enforcement within 12 months of the most recent reprisal. Once you show your disclosure was a contributing factor, the district must prove by clear and convincing evidence that it would have acted the same way anyway. More on retaliation claims.

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9. What you can recover, and the deadlines

Depending on the claim, remedies can include reinstatement, back pay and lost benefits, other damages, and attorney’s fees where a statute allows them. Many damages claims against a school district require a written government claim first: within six months for a claim for death or injury to a person or personal property, and within one year for most others (Government Code 911.2). Public employees’ claims for salaries and wages are excepted (Government Code 905(c)).

Claim	Deadline	Law
Layoff hearing request	Date in your March 15 notice (at least 7 days)	Ed. Code 44949(b)
Dismissal or suspension hearing demand	Before the action takes effect, which is 30 days after the notice of intent is served	Ed. Code 44934
PERB unfair practice charge	6 months	Gov. Code 3541.5(a)
Ed. Code whistleblower complaint to law enforcement	12 months from the last reprisal	Ed. Code 44114(a)
Discrimination, harassment or retaliation complaint with the Civil Rights Department	3 years	Gov. Code 12960(e)
Workers’ comp injury notice / claim	30 days / generally 1 year	Labor Code 5400, 5405

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10. What to do now

1. Read every notice the day it arrives. Layoff and dismissal notices carry short hearing deadlines.
2. Keep your own file: evaluations, notices, emails, your contract, pay stubs and the dates of any reports you made.
3. Ask for your personnel file (Education Code 44031; Labor Code 1198.5).
4. Put concerns in writing and keep a copy.
5. Ask your union representative about grievance deadlines.
6. Get legal advice early if you were disciplined, laid off out of order, or punished after a report.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I be laid off if I didn’t get a March 15 notice?

Not in the regular end-of-year process; without the March 15 notice and hearing rights, you are deemed reemployed. The summer budget window under Education Code 44955.5 follows its own schedule when in effect.

Do public school teachers get overtime in California?

Generally no. Teachers are exempt under the FLSA, and the wage-order overtime sections do not apply to school districts. Extra-duty pay comes from your contract.

How long until a teacher gets tenure in California?

In districts with 250 or more average daily attendance, after two complete consecutive school years, if you are reelected for the third.

Can teachers collect unemployment over the summer?

Usually not if you have reasonable assurance of work next year. If you were laid off with no offer to return, you may qualify; EDD decides.

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Laws this guide relies on

Law	What it does	Link
Ed. Code 44929.21	Permanent status after two years; March 15 reelection notice	Statute
Ed. Code 44932, 44934, 44938, 44944	Dismissal causes, notice and hearing	Statute (44932)
Ed. Code 44949, 44955, 44955.5, 44956	Layoff notices, seniority, budget layoffs, recall	Statute (44955)
Ed. Code 44977, 44977.5, 44978, 44984	Sick leave, differential pay, parental and industrial leave	Statute (44977)
Ed. Code 44014, 44031, 44112–44114	Assault reports, personnel files, whistleblowers	Statute (44114)
Gov. Code 3541.5, 3543, 3543.5	EERA rights and PERB charges	Statute (3543.5)
Labor Code 1102.5; Gov. Code 12940	Whistleblower and FEHA retaliation	Our 1102.5 guide
Unemp. Ins. Code 1253.3	Unemployment between school terms	Statute

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Sources

• Education Code 44949 (layoff notice and hearing)
• Education Code 44956 (reemployment rights)
• Education Code 44978 (certificated sick leave)
• Education Code 44813 (duty-free lunch)
• Education Code 44814 (duty-free lunch policy)
• Government Code 3541.5 (PERB six-month limit)
• IWC Wage Order 4, section 1(B) (public employees)
• U.S. Department of Labor Fact Sheet 17D (teacher exemption)
• EDD: School employees and unemployment
• PERB: The unfair practice charge process
• Labor Code 6401.9 (workplace violence prevention)

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