As winter hits much of the country with a few final blasts and springtime comes to the fore, many schools are in the midst of faculty contract renewal decisions. It is always a good idea to review your contract language each year to make sure that it still meets your needs. To aid in this effort, we’re happy to suggest a few tips and reminders.
Don’t Paint Yourself Into a Corner
Remember that the contract is meant to help both the school and the faculty member clarify the employment relationship and what each party can and cannot do. That being said, it’s not meant to tie the school’s hands when dealing with under performing employees. It’s important, then, not to include language that inadvertently paints the school into a corner, with no way for the Head to use judgment in responding to urgent or unique circumstances.
For example, many contracts include language that indicates “the faculty member can only be terminated ‘for cause’”—going on to give a very narrow definition of ‘cause.’ This can be very costly to schools, as it gives very limited (or no) options when a faculty member’s performance is problematic enough to warrant mid-year dismissal, but doesn’t necessarily meet the limited definition of ‘cause’ provided in the contract. Rather, we would suggest using the old legal standby of “including but not limited to”—which indicates that the reasons for termination aren’t solely limited to the examples listed.
To Pay Out or Not to Pay Out, That Is the Question
On those (hopefully) infrequent occasions when a faculty member needs to be replaced mid-year, the primary legal/financial question becomes whether or not you need to pay them for the remainder of the contract (e.g., through June 30). Unless explicitly stated to the contrary, the assumption will be that the contract provides pay through the end of its term. If the school determines that as a general matter of policy it will not pay terminated faculty beyond their last day of work, this should be explicitly spelled out in the contract. Example: “If the school terminates this contract for the reasons permitted prior to the end of its term, the employee’s pay and benefits eligibility will cease as of the last day worked.” Or, 14 days or 30 days or 60 days later—depending on what the school wishes to specify.
Any of the above answers (0, 14, 30, 60 days severance pay) are appropriate—as long as it is specified in advance. This information needs to be spelled out clearly in the contract. For more tips on faculty contracts, visit our free podcast on ISM’s YouTube channel (7 minutes in length).
