Hiring of Retired School Employees - 5001

The district shall recruit, select and employ the best qualified individuals as employees.  The district may employ persons retired from the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS), the School Employees’ Retirement System (SERS), or the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS).  A retired employee shall only be rehired pursuant to this district policy.

All retirees of TRS, SERS or PERS may work an annual threshold of eight hundred sixty-seven hours per year while receiving retirement benefits.  The annual threshold for TRS Plan I retirees is calculated per fiscal year.  All other plans are calculated per calendar year.  Qualified hours are determined by whether the retiree works in an eligible position as defined by the Department of Retirement Systems (DRS).

TRS I and PERS I Retirees (hired after July 22, 2007)

Beyond the eight hundred sixty-seven hours (867) per work year, eligible retirees hired from Plan I of TRS or PERS may work up to a total of one thousand five hundred hours (1,500) per year while receiving retirement benefits, subject to limitations established by DRS.

The district shall abide by the following process when considering a retiree for employment:

• Applicants shall be evaluated and considered equally, selecting the candidate who best meets the needs of the district.
• There shall be no prearranged employment agreement or commitment to rehire an employee after retirement.  Mere inquiries about post-retirement employment do not constitute an agreement.
• Employment shall be limited to a maximum of a one-year, non-continuing contract or appointment.
• The district shall make contributions to the appropriate retirement system when any retiree works more than eight hundred sixty-seven (867) hours per year.
• The district shall maintain records of the process followed in seeking qualified candidates that resulted in the hiring of the retiree.
• The board of directors shall approve the hiring and require the Superintendent’s designee to maintain records of a justifiable need for choosing the retiree.
• The district shall provide the retiree with the same terms and conditions of employment as other appointees or employees in comparable positions with the exception of sick-leave-cash-out.
• The district shall report the number of hours worked by the retiree to DRS.

The following conditions of employment shall apply to retirees that are re-employed:

• Retired applicants shall disclose to the district whether they are retired from a Washington State retirement plan.
• Employees must satisfy the DRS requirement for separation and retirement from service prior to accepting a retire/rehire position with the district.
• Retirees are subject to the same collective bargaining membership as other one-year temporary employees.
• Retirees are responsible for tracking service hours during post-retirement employment including amounts among multiple employers from any other public employer.  

Cross References:   

Policy 5610     Substitute Employment
Policy 5512    Temporary Administrators
Policy 5050     Contracts      

Legal References:

RCW 41.32 Teachers’ retirement
RCW 41.40 Washington public employees’ retirement system

Adoption Date: 9/25/07