§ 42 — Dismissal or demotion of teachers or other employees of school or school district; arbitration

Section 42. A principal may dismiss or demote any teacher or other person assigned full-time to the school, subject to the review and approval of the superintendent; and subject to the provisions of this section, the superintendent may dismiss any employee of the school district. In the case of an employee whose duties require him to be assigned to more than one school, and in the case of teachers who teach in more than one school, those persons shall be considered to be under the supervision of the superintendent for all decisions relating to dismissal or demotion for cause.A teacher who has been teaching in a school system for at least ninety calendar days shall not be dismissed unless he has been furnished with written notice of intent to dismiss and with an explanation of the grounds for the dismissal in sufficient detail to permit the teacher to respond and documents relating to the grounds for dismissal, and, if he so requests, has been given a reasonable opportunity within ten school days after receiving such written notice to review the decision with the principal or superintendent, as the case may be, and to present information pertaining to the basis for the decision and to the teacher's status. The teacher receiving such notice may be represented by an attorney or other representative at such a meeting with the principal or superintendent. Teachers without professional teacher status shall otherwise be deemed employees at will.A teacher with professional teacher status, pursuant to section forty-one, shall not be dismissed except for inefficiency, incompetency, incapacity, conduct unbecoming a teacher, insubordination or failure on the part of the teacher to satisfy teacher performance standards developed pursuant to section thirty-eight of this chapter or other just cause.A teacher with professional teacher status may seek review of a dismissal decision within thirty days after receiving notice of his dismissal by filing a petition for arbitration with the commissioner. The commissioner shall forward to the parties a list of three arbitrators provided by the American Arbitration Association. Each person on the list shall be accredited by the National Academy of Arbitrators. The parties each shall have the right to strike one of the three arbitrators' names if they are unable to agree upon a single arbitrator from amongst the three. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association to be consistent with the provisions of this section. The parties each shall have the right to strike one of the three arbitrators' names if they are unable to agree upon a single arbitrator from amongst the three. The board of education shall determine the process for selecting arbitrators for the pool. The fee for the arbitration shall be split equally between the two parties involved in the arbitration.At the arbitral hearing, the teacher and the school district may be represented by an attorney or other representative, present evidence, and call witnesses and the school district shall have the burden of proof. In determining whether the district has proven grounds for dismissal consistent with this section, the arbitrator shall consider the best interests of the pupils in the district and the need for elevation of performance standards.The arbitrator's decision shall be issued within one month from the completion of the arbitral hearing, unless all parties involved agree otherwise, and shall contain a detailed statement of the reasons for the decision. Upon a finding that the dismissal was improper under the standards set forth in this section, the arbitrator may award back pay, benefits, reinstatement, and any other appropriate non-financial relief or any combination thereof. Under no circumstances shall the arbitrator award punitive, consequential, or nominal damages, or compensatory damages other than back pay, benefits or reinstatement. In the event the teacher is reinstated, the period between the dismissal and reinstatement shall be considered to be time served for purposes of employment. The arbitral decision shall be subject to judicial review as provided in chapter one hundred and fifty C. With the exception of other remedies provided by statute, the remedies provided hereunder shall be the exclusive remedies available to teachers for wrongful termination. The rules governing this arbitration procedure shall be the rules of the American Arbitration Association as pertains to arbitration.Nothing in this section or section 41 shall affect the right of a superintendent to lay off teachers pursuant to reductions in force or reorganization resulting from declining enrollment or other budgetary reasons. No teacher with professional teacher status shall be laid off pursuant to a reduction in force or reorganization if there is a teacher without such status for whose position the covered employee is currently certified or if there is a less qualified teacher with such status holding the same or similar position for which the covered employee is currently certified. No teacher with such status shall be displaced in accordance with the terms of a collective bargaining agreement or otherwise by a more senior teacher with such status unless the more senior teacher is currently certified pursuant to section 38G and is at least as qualified for the position as the junior teacher holding the position. The criteria for determining a qualified teacher under this paragraph shall be subject to the collective bargaining provisions of chapter 150E; provided, however, that any such collectively bargained for qualifications shall include, as the primary factors, indicators of job performance, including overall ratings resulting from comprehensive evaluations conducted consistent with section 38 and the best interests of the students in the school or district; and provided further, that for the purposes of this paragraph, no distinction shall be made between the overall performance ratings established by the board of elementary and secondary education finding that the teacher has met or exceeded acceptable performance standards developed under said section 38 and that are defined by the board as proficient and exemplary. The school committee and the collective bargaining representative may negotiate for seniority or length of service only as a tie-breaker in personnel actions under this paragraph among teachers whose qualifications are no different using the qualifications collectively bargained for in accordance with this paragraph.