Head Start Teachers/Associate Degree Overtime College Hours

admin

I am currently a site supervisor for our local Head Start Program in sourthern Ohio. Currently our teachers are working toward their associate degrees in early childhood. Regularly their college hours cause them to exceed forty hours in one week or eighty hours in two-weeks. These teachers were informed that in order to retain their jobs in the future it would be necessary for them to obtain an associate degree. These teachers are not being compensated either monetarily or with compensatory time for any of their college hours.

Concerned with FLSA laws I approached the administration on this issue and was informed that these teachers are not due any type of compensation for their overtime hours. Their reasoning: the state of Ohio mandated that statewide one half of all Head Start teachers would have their associate degree by the year 2003 and that all would have their degree by the year 2007. They reasoned that because these teachers had volunteered to earn their degrees before the state's mandated deadline they were actually volunteering to attend college thus exempting them from FLSA overtime laws. My question: Is this administration correct in their theory of voluntary training hours or do I need to inform them on FLSA laws? If I do need to furthur pursue this issue please tell me the best way to do so.

Don D

From what you say, I am sure that the statewide organization or home office or headquarters of your state headstart program has someone on board who has intimate knowledge of the requirement of FLSA. I'm sure they have a personnel director and more than a few attorneys in the loop. In any event, overtime, in typical situations, is that number of hours WORKED in a workweek in excess of 40. That does not include hours paid but not worked, such as attending school or holidays or vacation or sick leave, etc. I know of nothing you should do to advance this.

Hatchetman

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 05-29-03 AT 02:37AM (CST)[/font][p]


Training is generally addressed in the regulatiory provisions of FLSA.

In Section 785.29 in Volume 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations provides the following. It may be on point to the issue you are identifying.

"The training is directly related to the employee's job if it is designed to make the employee handle his job more effectively as distinguished from training him for another job, or to a new or additional skill. For example, a stenographer who is given a course in stenography is engaged in an activity to make her a better stenographer. Time spent in such a course given by the employer or under his auspices is hours worked. However, if the stenographer takes a course in bookkeeping, it may not be directly related to her job. Thus, the time she spends voluntarily in taking such a bookkeeping course, outside of regular working hours, need not be counted as working time. Where a training course is instituted for the bona fide purpose of preparing for advancement through upgrading the employee to a higher skill, and is not intended to make the employee more efficient in his present job, the training is not considered directly related to the employee's job even though the course incidentally improves his skill in doing his regular work."

Remember, also that teachers under FLSA are also exempt but don't have to be salaried; they can be paid on an hourly basis, if the employer, in this case, I guess the State of Ohio, creates that as the pay status.

I agree with Don. I'm sure the state of Ohio has looked at the issue. You certainly can raise the issue with Ohio's Department of Labor (there's no guarantee that one hand of the state knows what the other hand is doing) or with the US DOL.

Don D

And of course Head Start 'teachers' are not traditional teachers, as few of them are degreed or certificated teachers in the literal sense and they don't have specific vocational preparation in the form of license or course of study. I'm not demeaning them or the program at all, but often they are considered teachers in the same sense as day care personnel are considered kindergarten teachers. They should not automatically be exempt by considering them to meet the definition of teacher. The staff in the head start centers that I have been familiar with for decades do not meet FLSA exemption tests. Perhaps those in Ohio do.

HCCADC

One of my programs is Head Start and we do not classify Teachers as exempt. They do not meet the criteria. If we require the teachers to go to training, we pay them, if the staff ask to go, but is not a requirement of the regulations, corp. etc. we have the option to approve it and pay or to approve it and they go on his/her own time. Our Teachers work 35 hrs a week, so it doesn't get into overtime. Maybe that would be a possiblity for your staff. Have a good day!