American Federation of Teachers v. Los Angeles Community College District

Opinion

LILLIE, J. American Federation of Teachers appeals from judgment denying its petition for writ of mandate to compel the Los Angeles Community College District (District) and its board of trustees to grant to all instructors of journalism employed by the District salary credit for occupational experience regardless of the date such instructors were hired.

The facts are without dispute. Pursuant to rules adopted by the board of trustees in 1974, employees in positions requiring certification qualifications when they are hired, are allowed credit for approved experience for the purpose of determining salary placement. In accordance with those rules, the District maintains a list of specific academic and vocational fields of instruction in which credit for occupational experience may be granted. Over the years the list has been modified to include new fields in which occupational experience may be credited to newly hired certificated employees. Effective September 13, 1976, the District added journalism as a field of instruction in which occupational experience credit may be granted to new employees for salary purposes. This inclusion of journalism, as is the case with other additions to the list, was prospective; i.e., it applied only to instructors hired on or after the date the subject was added to the list. The District grants occupational experience salary credit to newly hired employees for any one or a combination of the following reasons: (1) recruitment of instructors in fields in which there is high demand for, and a low supply of instructors; (2) a determination that occupational experience has become relevant to a particular field of instruction. In recent years the teaching of journalism has placed increased emphasis on the production of a college newspaper and less emphasis on purely academic instruction in a traditional classroom environment. For that reason the District considered it desirable to grant salary credit upon initial hire to instructors of journalism who have a background of occupational experience in that field and related fields. Jack Searles, an instructor of journalism with [945]occupational experience in that field who was hired by the District in 1971, filed a grievance claiming the right to receive occupational experience salary credit. Following a hearing, the board of review issued its advisory decision that Searles is entitled to such credit. The board of trustees reversed that decision.

Thereafter, the American Federation of Teachers, as representative of the certificated employees of the District, commenced the instant mandamus proceeding, alleging that the rules limiting occupational experience salary credit to instructors of journalism hired after September 13, 1976, are arbitrary and capricious and violate the equal protection clauses of the federal Constitution and the California Constitution. After making findings of fact reflecting the facts recited herein, the trial court concluded that a rational basis exists for limiting occupational experience salary credit to instructors of journalism employed by the District on or after September 13, 1976; therefore, the rules are not arbitrary or capricious and do not deny equal protection of the laws to instructors of journalism with occupational experience who were hired by the District before that date. On this appeal from the ensuing judgment denying petition for writ of mandate, the sole issue is the correctness of the trial court’s conclusions.