Personnel Home

Bakersfield City School District

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

General Personnel	Insurance
Employment	Teacher Compensation Form

GENERAL PERSONNEL QUESTIONS:

• I need a letter to verify my employment.  How do I get one?

Letters of verification are prepared based on written requests only.   We do not release any information regarding employees over the telephone.   Requests for letters can be made by completing a request form in the personnel office.  Lenders may obtain verification of your employment by submitting their written request along with your signed authorization.  Twenty-four (24) to forty-eight (48) hours are required to complete these letters.  Requests may be submitted to us by mail, in person, or by FAX at (661) 631-4869.

• How do I contact the substitute request system (SEMS)?

The telephone number for the SEMS is (661) 631-4646.  All employees, substitutes, and administrators are given an instruction pamphlet for operating within the SEMS.  Please call Luci Segrest at the help desk at (661) 631-4861 if you need another copy.  You may also contact the designated employee mentor at your school site.

• What is the deadline for submitting transcripts for salary increase?

Professional growth salary increases are posted three (3) times a year for certificated employees and two (2) times a year for classified employees.   Certificated deadline dates are: October 5th, February 5th, and June 30th.   Classified deadline dates are: October 5th and February 5th.  Official transcripts or grade cards must be submitted to Personnel Services by the deadline date for salary advancement.  Salary changes are effective on the first (1st) of either October or February or July 1st for the June 30th deadline.

• What holidays do we have during the school year?

The following days are established as holidays for twelve month employees when they fall during the regular work week or as defined in Education Code and identified in the school calendar:

Independence Day	Labor Day
Veteran's Day	Admissions Day or designated alternative
Thanksgiving Day and the following day	Christmas Day and one additional day
New Year's Day	Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Lincoln Day	Washington Day
Good Friday	Memorial Day
Every day appointed by the President of the United States or the Governor of California

INSURANCE QUESTIONS:

• Will I be able to choose my own doctor?

Your Blue Cross plan allows you to go to any doctor that you choose.  However, there is an advantage if you choose a participating foundation doctor.  Participating doctors, hospitals, and other providers agree to accept foundation amounts as payment in full for covered services (after deductibles have been met).  Non-foundation providers are paid the same amounts but are not obligated to accept them as payment in full.  In such a case, you would be responsible for any balance due.  Please contact the Foundation for Medical Care at (661) 327-7581 for a Preferred Provider Organization Directory.

• Which local hospitals are foundation members?

Memorial and Mercy (Downtown and Southwest).

In order to keep your out-of-pocket expenses down, you should check the following in advance of a scheduled surgery:
        1.  Your doctor gets pre-authorization from Blue Cross
        2.  You use a foundation hospital
        3.  You use a foundation doctor, anesthesiologist, etc.
Note: San Joaquin is not a foundation member.  If you use San Joaquin, you will be responsible for the balance of the bill after payment has been made by Blue Cross.

• What is my annual deductible?

Employee office visits: $30.00	Employee major medical: $100.00*
Dependent office visits: $100.00	Dependent major medical: $100.00*

*$300.00 maximum for a family
These are basic amounts.  Refer to your plan description booklet for additional information.

• Who should I contact with questions about claims and benefit coverage?

The Foundation for Medical Care of Kern County at (661) 327-7581.  Foundation staff will answer your questions about coverage, check to see why your doctor has not been paid, etc.

For other insurance organization numbers, click here.

• How do I add new dependents to my plan?

In addition to the dependents enrolled on your initial application, you must file an application with SISC III through the District Personnel Services to enroll:

        1.  A new spouse within 31 days after the date of marriage.
        2.  A newly-acquired child within 31 days after the birth or
             placement of the child.

Any application not filed within the time limits must be submitted during the open enrollment period held in September of each year.  Please see your plan description booklet for more information on eligibility and new enrollment.

• How do I use my prescription plan?

          Blue Cross Group #40004G              (BCSD Certificated Employees)

Employee Co-payments:  The retail pharmacy service.  Show your prescription ID card at the pharmacy.  You can get up to a 30-day supply of covered medication.  You pay a $2 co-payment for generic drugs.  You pay a $5 co-payment for brand-name drugs. 

The Medco Health home delivery pharmacy service.  You can get up to a 90-day supply of covered medication.  You pay $4 co-payment for generic drugs. 

Please note:  If you choose to purchase a brand-name drug when a generic equivalent is available, you will be required to pay your generic co-payment plus the difference in cost between the brand-name and generic equivalent.

Dependent Co-payments:  The retail pharmacy service.  No co-payment.  Dependents prescription drugs are covered under Blue Cross major medical (80% reimbursement for prescriptions after the dependent’s major medical deductible has been met).  You    would present your prescription card to the pharmacy to receive a discount when you purchase a dependent’s prescription and then submit to Blue Cross Foundation the charges on a Claim Form (contact Foundation for Medical Care for a “Patient Claim Form” at         (661) 325-7581).

The Medco Health home delivery pharmacy service.  You can get up to a 90-day supply of covered medication.  You pay $20 co-payment for generic drugs.  You pay $30 co-payment for brand-name drugs. 

 

Blue Cross Group #40004J and 40004K      (BCSD Classified, Confidential, Management, Supervisory and Skilled Trades Employees)

Employee Co-payments:  The retail pharmacy service.  Show your prescription ID card at the pharmacy.  You can get up to a 30-day supply of covered medication.  You pay a $3 co-payment for generic drugs.  You pay a $15 co-payment for brand-name drugs.

The Medco Health home delivery pharmacy service.  You can get up to a 90-day supply of covered medication.  You pay $3 co-payment for generic drugs. You pay $35 co-payment for brand-name drugs.  Standard shipping and handling is free.

Please note:  If you choose to purchase a brand-name drug when a generic equivalent is available, you will be required to pay your generic co-payment plus the difference in cost between the brand-name and generic equivalent.

Dependent Co-payments:  The retail pharmacy service.  No co-payment.  Dependents prescription drugs are covered under Blue Cross major medical (80% reimbursement for prescriptions after the dependent’s major medical deductible has been met).  You would present your prescription card to the pharmacy to receive a discount when you purchase a dependent’s prescription and then submit to Blue Cross Foundation the charges on a Claim Form (contact Foundation for Medical Care for a “Patient Claim Form” at (661) 325-7581).

The Medco Health home delivery pharmacy service.  You can get up to a 90-day supply of covered medication.  You pay $20 co-payment for generic and brand-name medications with no generic equivalent.  You pay $30 co-payment for brand-name medications with a generic equivalent. 

• I'm interested in retiring.  Who should I contact for information?

Classified employees interested in information about CalPERS retirement should contact our office at 631-4857 or 631-4858.  We will be able to provide information booklets and CalPERS workshop dates.  As a general rule, classified employees should begin the retirement application process at least ninety days before the planned retirement date.

Certificated employees contemplating retirement may wish to contact Jose Cantu, STRS Retirement Consultant, at the office of the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, (661) 636-4341.

EMPLOYMENT QUESTIONS:

• What qualifications are necessary to be a substitute teacher?

To qualify for the emergency 30-Day substitute credential, you must have a bachelor's degree and have passed CBEST.  However, the Bakersfield City School District is offering applicants who currently have a bachelor's degree, but who have not yet passed CBEST, the opportunity to pass the District MiniCBEST.  Please contact Luci Segrest at (661)631-4861 for additional information.

Also, the Commission on Teacher Credentialing has approved the addition of two (2) new types of emergency substitute permits.  Please read through these new regulations for additional information.

• How do I get on the BCSD substitute teacher list?

The Bakersfield City School District requires that applicants complete and submit all required paperwork in order to be considered for the substitute teacher list.   Currently those requirements are: completed application, resume, placement file or 2 letters of recommendation, copy of CBEST card, and copy of complete set of transcripts.   After submission of completed application packet, you will be contacted to attend a substitute teacher orientation.

• What if I am currently on the County list or with another school district?

The Bakersfield City School District prepares a personnel file for all employees, so the above listed paperwork must be submitted.  If a credential has been applied for with the County office or another school district, it is not necessary to reapply for a credential with each district; however, a verification of credential must be submitted.

• How do I find out about job listing?

Currently our on-line job announcements are limited.  To review current vacancies posted to this home page, see Job Opportunities.  For an entire listing of all positions that are available you may call our hotline:

Management/Certificated:	(661) 631-4871
Classified:	(661) 631-4870
24 hours a day, 7 days a week/Updated weekly

TEACHER COMPENSATION FORM

• Who is responsible for completing the compensation form?

It is the responsibility of the teacher who is seeking compensation for taking additional students to correctly complete the compensation form.  The Principal is responsible for signing the form, this serves as verification to Personnel that the submitted information on the compensation form is true and accurate.  The school secretary is not responsible for completing any portion of this form.

• When is it determined that no substitute teacher is available?

The SEMS system will continue to attempt to fill a vacancy until 11:00 a.m.  At that time, if the position has not been filled, Personnel Services will stop the calling out for a substitute and will count the position as "No Substitute Available" for the day.

• Will teachers be compensated for their time when a substitute shows up at the school after start-time and students were distributed?

Yes, based on the calculation procedure.  If a substitute teacher reports to your site after students have been disbursed, the teacher receiving the additional students will be compensated based on the following calculation:  Any fraction of an hour less than .5 (1/2) is dropped.  A fraction of an hour equal to or greater than .5 (1/2) is counted as one (1) hour.

• What if a teacher becomes ill after arriving to campus and needs to leave?

The teacher must call in the absence to the SEMS system prior to distributing the students to another classroom or asking teachers to substitute during their planning period.  It must be verifiable by Personnel Services that no substitute teacher was available for the assignment before teachers will be compensated.

• If we are sending full classrooms of students to our PE teacher, how do they complete the form?

An attendance printout will be accepted by Personnel Services in place of the teacher writing out all the student's names on the compensation form.  However, these lists must be the daily attendance records, not a printout of every student assigned to that classroom.  Compensation is based on the number of students accepted by the teacher.  Personnel Services must have true and accurate records to formulate this calculation.  If, in the future, it is verified that inaccurate records are being submitted, this procedure will be changed back to the actual listing of the student names.

• Why do we only post one (1) hour of compensation on the timesheet?

At Elementary Schools and Jr. High/Middle School PE classrooms where students are divided into other classrooms when no substitute is available, in order to reduce the burden this new procedure has placed on school secretaries, it was determined that Personnel Services would be responsible for posting the compensation calculation to the extra-time authorization.  However, school secretaries are the only ones able to post the timesheet, so it was determined that it would be easiest if there was no calculation necessary by the school secretary.  By having to only post 1 hour, school secretaries do not have to worry about any of the calculation information.   This information has already been processed and the teacher will receive full compensation as an hourly rate.

At Jr. High/Middle Schools where teachers volunteer to give up their planning period each teacher is compensated $15.00 for substituting during their planning period.  Even if the planning period is only 45 minutes, each teacher is paid for the entire hour.