GAE Legal Services
Georgia Educator Employment Contracts
Summarized below are Georgia legal references to provide you with a quick
and easy guide for questions commonly asked about your employment
contract. This is not intended to be an exhaustive explanation of the law.
I
f you are employed with a Strategic Waiver School System, you should
consult the list of waivers to determine if your school board has waived
these rights. Many SWSS have not waived these rights but it is important to
check. Here is the link to the Strategic Waiver School System agreements
and waiver lists:
http://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-and-
Policy/Policy/Pages/IE2.aspx.
If you are employed with a Charter School System then your board of
education waived the statutory rights under the Title 20, Georgia’s education
law and your rights are governed by local school board policy. This is the
link to the charter system agreements:
http://www.gadoe.org/External-
Affairs-and-Policy/Charter-Schools/Pages/Approved-Charter-Systems.aspx.
If you are employed with a Traditional School System – congratulations! -
your statutory contract rights remain intact.
If y
ou are confronted with a particular problem, you should consult with
appropriate GAE UniServ Director or GAE legal counsel. Again, the
references below may or may not apply to your school system depending on
where you are employed.
• G
AE funded litigation established that teacher contracts have a six-
year statute of limitations. Musocgee County Board of Education v.
Boisvert, 196 Ga. App. 537, 396 S.E.2d 303 (1990). Thankfully,
school districts cannot waive Court decisions.
• T
eachers, principals, and other certificated professionals are entitle
d
to w
ritten contracts. OCGA 20-2-211. Of course, always read your
contract before signing it.
• An educator must obtain the approval from the superintendent in order
to be released from a contract. You should refer to the contract
provision for specific terms and conditions. Should an educator leave
the school system without obtaining a release, the Professional
Standards Commission may suspend their certificate for 90 days for
“breach of contract.” Code of Ethics, Standard 9.
https://www.gapsc.com/Rules/Current/Ethics/505-6-.01.pdf
Unsurprisingly, your school district cannot waive the Code of Ethics.
• Effective January 1, 20
18 the PSC adopted Internal Guidance criteria
that provide minimum guidelines to determine “no probable cause” in
“breach of contract” complaints.
• For the complete list of the Internal Guidelines click here
https://www.gapsc.com/Ethics/Downloads/Breach_of_Contract_Guid
elines-January2018.docx GAE advocated for the Internal Guidelines
to be included into the Code of Ethics for the convenience of notifying
the education community of your rights.
• Georgia law provides that a letter of intent is not a legally binding
contract. OCGA 20-2-211 (b). Note that the statute does not provide a
date or timeline as to when letters of intent must be presented to
employees.
• Georgia law requires that contracts shall be complete in all terms and
conditions, including the amount of compensation to be paid during
the ensuing school year. OCGA 20-2-211 (b). The statute does not
require contracts to state the specific position or school location.
• Unless the law has been waived, employees have a statutory minimum
10-day period to review their contracts. OCGA 20-2-942 (b). The ten-
day period is by default measured as ten calendar days, unless
otherwise determined by local board policy as business days.
• School systems must offer written contracts for the following school
year by May 15 of the current school year. OCGA 20-2-211 (b).
• If an educator does not receive a written notice of non-renewal by
May 15, then the contract is automatically renewed for the following
school year, UNLESS the educator notifies the local board of
education in writing not later than June 1of their intent not to accept
employment for the following school year. OCGA 20-2-211 (b).
• A local superintendent must provide written notice of non-renewal
postmarked by May 15 if he or she will not be recommending the
educator for employment for the following school year. OCGA 20-2-
211 (b).
• The law also requires superintendents to provide any teacher whose
contract was not renewed, upon written request, a written explanation
for failure to renew their contract. OCGA 20-2-211 (b).
• Educators who have acquired Fair Dismissal due process rights, the
notice of non-renewal must be delivered by certified mail, it must
inform the educator of the local board’s intention not to renew the
contract, it must contain a conspicuous statement of the educator’s
due process rights, and it must be signed by the superintendent. By
law, the educator must respond within 20 days after the notice was
mailed to request a nonrenewal hearing. OCGA 20-2-940 and 20-2-
942.
It’s strongly recommended that you keep the original certified mail envelope
with the postmark date. Attorneys will want to have this document for the
file, and it may become critical evidence.
• All teachers, regardless of whether they have acquired due process
rights to a nonrenewal or demotion hearing, have a right to hearing for
termination or suspension. OCGA 20-2-940.
GAE Legal Services Fights Back!
As mentioned above, many of your contract rights may have been waived by
your local board of education. That is why NEA/GAE lawyers have filed
several lawsuits seeking reinstatement of your due process rights guaranteed
under Georgia’s constitution. GAE will keep you updated on the progress of
these suits.
Local Associations Fight Back!
The lawsuits are not able to address or reinstate your contract rights, if
waived, or other important professional rights such as duty-free lunch, class
size, certification requirements, and the state salary schedule. These rights
can be won back through political organizing activities through your local
association. Demand that your school board adopt local policies to re-
establish critical rights that have been waived. GAE is there to support and
assist your local organizing activities.
