Section 89542.5.
Cal. Education Code - EDC § 89542.5.
in effect(a)
The Trustees of the California State University shall establish grievance and disciplinary action procedures for all academic employees, including all temporary employees who have been employed for more than one semester or quarter, whereby all of the following requirements are satisfied:
(1)
Grievances and disciplinary actions shall be heard by a faculty hearing committee composed of full-time faculty members, selected by lot from a panel elected by the campus faculty, which shall make a recommendation to the president of the state university.
(2)
The grievance or disciplinary hearing shall be open to the public at the option of the person aggrieved or the person charged in a disciplinary hearing.
(3)
Each party to the dispute shall have the right of representation by a faculty adviser or counsel of his or her choice and to be provided access to a complete record of the hearing.
(4)
If there is disagreement between the faculty hearing committee’s decision and the state university president’s decision, the matter shall go before an arbitrator whose decision shall be final.
(5)
The costs incurred in arbitration shall be paid by the state university.
(6)
If the parties cannot agree upon an arbitrator, either party may petition the Federal Mediation Service, the State Conciliation Service, or the American Arbitration Association for a list of seven qualified, disinterested persons, from which list each party shall alternate in striking three names, and the remaining person shall be designated as the arbitrator.
(7)
The grievance procedure established pursuant to this section shall be exclusive with respect to any grievance that is not subject to a State Personnel Board hearing. In the case of a grievance or disciplinary action that is subject to a State Personnel Board hearing, pursuant to Sections 89535 to 89539, inclusive, and Section 89542, the procedures provided for in those sections or those provided for in this section may be utilized. The academic employee shall have the choice of which procedures shall be utilized.
(b)
For purposes of this section, a “grievance” is an allegation by an employee that the employee was directly wronged in connection with the rights accruing to his or her job classification, benefits, working conditions, appointment, reappointment, tenure, promotion, reassignment, or the like. A grievance does not include matters, such as the salary structure, which require legislative action.
(c)
If a memorandum of understanding is agreed to pursuant to Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 3560) of Division 4 of Title 1 of the Government Code, and it provides for merit pay for academic employees of the university, the arbitration provisions of this section shall not apply to grievances concerning merit pay.
(d)
If the provisions of this section are in conflict with the provisions of a memorandum of understanding reached pursuant to Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 3560) of Division 4 of Title 1 of the Government Code, the memorandum of understanding shall be controlling without further legislative action, except that, if the provisions of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provisions shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act.
References
referencesCal. Government Code - GOV § 3560.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89535.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89536.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89537.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89538.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89539.
referencesCal. Education Code - EDC § 89542.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026