Contracts

  1. Each employee will receive an employment contract upon hire that describes the terms and conditions for employment.
  2. The contract will continue until it is terminated by the employee (transfer, resignation or retirement) or by the employer.

Severance Eligibility Criteria

  1. An exempt employee who holds a permanent, full-time, non-union position for at least one (1) year may be eligible for severance.
  2. An exempt employee who holds a position that is interim, less than full-time, or has less than one year in exempt, non-union service is not eligible for severance.
  3. An exempt employee who otherwise is eligible for severance will not receive severance if:
    1. An employee is terminated for cause;
    2. An employee retires or resigns from Seattle Colleges;
    3. An employee is no longer employed due to the end of a grant contract.

Severance Provisions

  1. Should the Seattle Colleges District choose to end the contract of an exempt non-union employee who is eligible for severance, the District may provide 30 days’ notice of separation and, at the end of employment, will provide 60 days’ salary as severance. The District will pay to Health Care Authority the cost of COBRA to continue medical coverage for 60 days after the end of employment.
  2. If the District does not provide the 30-day notice prior to ending the contract of an exempt non-union employee who is eligible for severance, the District will provide the financial equivalent of 90 days’ salary. The District will pay to Health Care Authority the cost of COBRA to continue medical coverage for 90 days after the end of employment.
  3. Severance for the chancellor and presidents is an individually negotiated contract term as part of a complete employment package and may vary from this policy.

Notice of Separation
An exempt employee who is otherwise ineligible for severance as defined in the above will receive 30 days’ notice prior to the end of the contract. If immediate separation is indicated, the employee will receive 30 days’ pay instead of 30 days’ notice.

Termination for cause
For exempt non-union employees, ‘cause’ is defined as:

  1. Conviction of work-related crime;
  2. Conviction of a crime which prohibits successful performance of the job;
  3. Gross misconduct and/or insubordination;
  4. Willful and egregious violation of District rules, policies, procedures, or directives;
  5. Documented incompetence in the performance of professional duties;
  6. Neglect of duty or abandonment of position;
  7. Sexual harassment;
  8. Acts of moral turpitude;
  9. Workplace violence;
  10. Knowing and willful breach of ethics;
  11. Conviction for aiding and abetting or participating in:
    1. Any unlawful act of violence; or
    2. Any unlawful act resulting in destruction of Seattle College property; or
    3. Any unlawful interference with the orderly conduct of the education process.

Reversion Rights

  1. Administrators, except president/chancellor, who have been granted tenured faculty status with the Seattle Colleges prior to holding an administrative appointment may return to the faculty bargaining unit in accordance with the provisions of the Tenure Act of 1969 whenever their status as administrators is terminated.
  2. If a current exempt, non-union employee of Seattle Colleges accepts a temporary or interim assignment, the Seattle Colleges will grant reversion rights to the employee upon completion of the temporary or interim appointment. If the situation permits, such an employee may be placed to the same position held by the employee prior to the temporary or interim assignment; if the situation does not permit, Seattle College reserves the right to place the employee into an alternate position within the District with the same grade and salary.
  3. Employees who were not Seattle College employees at the time of acceptance of an interim or temporary assignment have no reversion rights.

Effective Date
This policy will take effect on July 1, 2019 and will apply to all exempt non-union employees.

Adoption Date : 1982/05/03
Revision Date : 2019/04/11