Teachers in Placer County school district file lawsuit, grievance over COVID safety concerns

The Rocklin teachers union filed a lawsuit and a class-action grievance with the Public Employment Relations Board against the Rocklin Unified School District for what they claim is a change of policy on how the district handles students and staff who may have COVID-19 symptoms.

Travis Mougeotte, president of the Rocklin Teachers Professional Association, said the district’s management failed to follow the memorandum of understanding signed in August that provided safety measures for students and teachers when Rocklin schools reopened campuses.

Under the agreement between the district and the teachers union, students or staff who are on campus and show signs of illness would typically be sent to a health aide’s office and then sent home. But Mougeotte said, based on the county’s guidelines, health aides can take into account children’s pre-exisiting health conditions and parents’ explanations for mild symptoms – including seasonal allergies – meaning some sick students could be sent back to classrooms. That change in policy was made without consultation with the teachers union, Mougeotte said.

“Where is the line?” Mougeotte asked. “It’s very arbitrary.”

Mougeotte said some of the health aides are licensed nurses, but not all.

“We don’t want one person to be burdened with this decision and making the ultimate decision to send a child back to class, especially if the training varies between health aides,” he said.

Rocklin Unified reopened its campuses six weeks ago and was among the first school districts in the region to reopen. District officials say that the safety of their students and staff is a top priority.

“Rocklin Unified School District is following guidelines to safely reopen our schools from the California Department of Public Health as well as the Placer County Office of Public Health,” read a statement from the district. “Our labor partner is asking the District to disregard the protocols per state and local government health directives. We will continue to follow these protocols and work with the Rocklin Teachers Professional Association regarding the grievance they filed and their filing with the California Public Employment Relations Board.”

“We jointly agreed that without rapid testing available and in order to protect our students and staff while reopening in the distance learning hybrid model for on-campus instruction, that all students and staff exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms would be sent home with a recommendation for testing,” read a statement from Mougeotte. “It is crucial that the safety of our educators, staff, students, and community remain a top priority as we continue to educate our students throughout this pandemic in the safest possible environment.”

This story was originally published November 5, 2020 at 10:11 AM.