TRENTON – The Assembly Education Committee released, along party lines, a bill that would extend the tenure eligibility period from three years to four years for certain employees.
The bill also requires two evaluations to take place in order to acquire tenure.
In addition, the bill requires binding arbitration to determine contested cases involving dismissal or compensation reduction of tenured school employees.
The committee’s three Republicans – David Wolfe, Scott Rumana and Betty Lou DeCroce – all abstained. Wolfe, for one, said there wasn’t enough time to review the bill given that he only received it about a day ago. He pointed out he has been hearing about similar bills proposed by Sen. Teresa Ruiz and Assemblyman Albert Coutinho for a long time.
The bill’s sponsor, committee Chairman Patrick Diegnan, of South Plainfield, said in his 11 years on the Assembly, tenure reform is one of the biggest issues he has worked on. He described the bill as fair and equitable.
This bill puts in place a very expeditious process, he said.
However, the New Jersey School Boards Association said the bill needs work.
Among other things, the NJSBA said the bill, which would select arbitrators to replace the Office of Adminstrative Law, would be “weighted in favor of the union,” said Executive Director Marie Bilik.
Under the proposal, the state’s Public Employment Relations Commission would select an arbitrator from a pool of 24 — 10 identified by NJSBA and 14 selected by employee groups like the New Jersey Education Association and the New Jersey Association of Principals and Supervisors.
“Such an imbalance presents a much greater chance of PERC assigning a union-identified arbitrator to a tenure case,” Bilik said. For this reason, Bilik called for an amendment where PERC would be able to select from a balanced pool of management- and union-identified arbitrators.
The board added that the bill actually extends the period before administrators can even recommend tenures charges can be heard by PERC. It’s currently 90 days, but Diegnan’s bill calls for extending that period to one year for the corrective action plan to be implemented.
The board sought an amendment that would enable administrators to recommend tenure charges any time after an employee is given notice of ineffective performance and is placed on a corrective action plan.
“This amendment would ensure a more responsive and effective process, which relies on the professional judgment of school administrators and supervisors, while still providing due process for the employee,” Bilik said.
NJEA supports the tenure reform bill, saying it moves in the right direction by making it harder and less expensive to earn tenure.
Officials with the largest teachers union said there’s a misperception about tenure being easily given to teachers after three years and one day. However, the NJEA said four out of every 10 teachers actually receive tenure, said NJEA Government Relations Director Ginger Gold Schnitzer.
