Oregon Statutes 342.608 – Working hours for licensed personnel; duty-free lunch period required; exception
(1) School boards shall fix the working hours for full-time and part-time licensed staff members. They shall direct that full-time staff members be provided a time for a 30-minute continuous duty-free lunch period during the regularly scheduled lunch hours.
Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 342.608
- Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
- state government: means the executive department, the judicial department and the legislative department. See Oregon Statutes 174.111
- Teacher: includes all licensed employees in the public schools or employed by an education service district who have direct responsibility for instruction or coordination of educational programs and who are compensated for their services from public funds. See Oregon Statutes 342.120
(2) Any school principal who fails to schedule a continuous 30-minute duty-free lunch period in accordance with this section shall be guilty of neglect of duty under ORS § 342.865.
(3) No teacher shall by oral orders or written agreement fail to receive a 30-minute lunch period.
(4) School boards shall not be required to employ special personnel to supervise students during lunch periods.
(5) This section does not apply in school buildings where fewer than three teachers are employed. [1971 c.201 § 1]
Sections 26 and 27, chapter 592, Oregon Laws 2023, provide:
(1) The Task Force on Statewide Educator Salary Schedules is established.
(2) The task force consists of 12 members appointed as follows:
(a) The President of the Senate shall appoint one member who is the chairperson of the Senate interim committee of the Legislative Assembly related to education.
(b) The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint one member who is the chairperson of the House interim committee of the Legislative Assembly related to education.
(c) The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall jointly appoint the following 10 members:
(A) A member who is a representative of a coalition that represents school administrators;
(B) A member who is a representative of an association that represents school boards;
(C) A member who is a representative of an association that primarily represents licensed educators;
(D) A member who is a representative of an association that primarily represents classified educator staff;
(E) A member who is a superintendent of a school district;
(F) A member who is a licensed teacher of a school district;
(G) A member who is a classified school employee at a school district;
(H) A member who is a business manager or a human resources manager for a school district; and
(I) Two members who are parents of students in the public schools of this state.
(3) The task force shall:
(a) Study the benefits and challenges of implementing a statewide salary schedule for educators in this state.
(b) Propose a statewide salary schedule for educators, which must include regional differences. When developing the statewide salary schedule, the task force must:
(A) Consider whether the regional differences shall align with the regions specified in ORS § 653.025 or make recommendations for other regional designations.
(B) Consider and make recommendations regarding pay for student teachers.
(C) Consider and make recommendations regarding pay for educators and classified school employees when 75 percent or more of the educator’s or employee’s student caseload consists of students who have an individualized education program.
(4) A majority of the members of the task force constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business.
(5) Official action by the task force requires the approval of a majority of the members of the task force.
(6) The members of the task force who are members of the Legislative Assembly shall serve as cochairpersons.
(7) If there is a vacancy for any cause, the appointing authority shall make an appointment to become immediately effective.
(8) The task force shall meet at times and places specified by the call of the cochairpersons or of a majority of the voting members of the task force.
(9) The task force may adopt rules necessary for the operation of the task force.
(10) The task force shall submit a report in the manner provided by ORS § 192.245, and may include recommendations for legislation, to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to education no later than:
(a) December 31, 2023, to provide information on the study described in subsection (3)(a) of this section; and
(b) September 15, 2024, to propose the statewide salary schedule for educators described in subsection (3)(b) of this section.
(11) The Legislative Policy and Research Director shall provide staff support to the task force.
(12) Members of the task force who are not members of the Legislative Assembly are not entitled to compensation or reimbursement for expenses and serve as volunteers on the task force.
(13) All agencies of state government, as defined in ORS § 174.111, are directed to assist the task force in the performance of the duties of the task force and, to the extent permitted by laws relating to confidentiality, to furnish information and advice the members of the task force consider necessary to perform their duties. [2023 c.592 § 26]
Section 26 of this 2023 Act is repealed on December 31, 2024. [2023 c.592 § 27]
[1977 c.137 § 1; renumbered 336.081 in 1993]