May 10, 1993

Mr. Mike Damron
Post Office Box 71
Wayne, West Virginia 25570

Dear Mr. Damron:

You have asked several questions relating to substitute and regular bus operators. Your first question relates to Code 18A-4-15, which, you say, provides regular employee status to substitutes after thirty days of employment (under certain circumstances). You ask whether, in order to achieve this regular employee status, the service must be for thirty consecutive days without interruption and also must be in the course of substituting for the same (one) employee.

Code 18A-4-15(2) requires assignment of substitute service personnel (on the basis of seniority):

"To fill the position of a regular service employee on leave of absence: Provided, that if such leave of absence is to extend beyond thirty days, the board, within twenty working days from the commencement of the leave of absence, shall give regular employee status to a person hired to fill such position. . . . The substitute shall hold such position and regular employee status only until the regular employee shall be returned to such position. . . ."

Code 18A-4-15(5) also provides for the assignment of substitutes:

"To fill the vacancy created by a regular employee's suspension: Provided, that if the suspension is for more than thirty working days, the substitute . . . shall be assigned to fill the vacancy on a regular basis . . . until such termination by the county board of education becomes final."

This language does not seem to require that the substitute work thirty consecutive days to obtain the regular status; rather, that the leave of absence or suspension extend beyond thirty working days, as the case may be. This language also necessarily implies that the substitute is replacing a single employee, who is either on leave of absence or suspension. 

Mr. Mike Damron
Page Two
May 10, 1993

Your second question is: Some bus operators after working their regular bus runs must transport students from their regular schools to vocational school, then wait until after their classes to return them to their regular schools. Should these drivers be paid for a curricular run since this is beyond their regular run?

Yes. Please refer to my enclosed letter written to Manuel P. Arvon, September 13, 1990(3).