Reopening Training Required

The New York State Education Department (NYSED) and State Department of Health school reopening guidance repeatedly reference the need for employees, students, and others within the school community (parents, contractors) to be appropriately trained in health and safety protocols. The following is a summary of training that will be required for different populations of the school community:

Employees: health screening; the use of appropriate personal protective equipment, such as masks; social distancing; handwashing; sanitation/disinfection; recognition of COVID-19 symptoms and social-emotional needs of students. Note that there are special rules for those working in transportation; for example, hand sanitizer is not permitted on school buses given its flammability.

Students: health screening; the use of appropriate personal protective equipment, such as masks; social distancing; handwashing; respiratory etiquette; bus safety (loading, seating, traveling and unloading); school entry and exit protocols; and traffic flow within the school.

Parents and others: health screening; limited visitation to schools; school visitation expectations regarding health screening; the use of appropriate personal protective equipment; social distancing; and handwashing/sanitizing.

Schools should begin planning now for the development and implementation of this training. If a particular topic falls within an existing employee’s job duties, individuals within those titles may be tasked with developing the training. For example, the school’s mental health team (nurses, school psychologists, school counselors, school social workers) may be best suited to develop training related to recognition of student social-emotional learning needs. BOCES health and safety services may also be a resource, and available to prepare and deliver training. Pre-recording the various training sessions such that they may be reviewed remotely and/or based on the work schedules of the targeted audience is prudent. For example, substitute teachers may be able to view a pre-recorded video in order to receive necessary training prior to reporting to work. It may also be possible to embed aspects of the required training during the school day, such as reminders about proper handwashing routines during morning announcements.

Schools must understand that there will be collective bargaining considerations in connection with training. For example, the provision of training outside of a standard work day will be subject to negotiations over the impact on terms and conditions of employment of employees who are represented by unions. If individuals are being assigned additional duties as a result of the training, school districts will also need to consider whether these duties have exclusively been performed by employees in a particular bargaining unit. If so, it is possible that assigning this work to persons outside that unit may be an improper practice under the Taylor Law.

Should you have questions about the training contemplated under the applicable guidance, or the interplay between training requirements and collective bargaining, please contact our office.