New York State law requires that in appropriate circumstances regular substitute service be credited toward a teacher’s probationary term as well as toward seniority. The circumstances and extent to which regular substitute service must be credited in each instance are subject to a variety of rules that have been developed by the courts and the Commissioner of Education. Failure to correctly apply these rules in computing probationary terms or teacher seniority can have significant legal implications. In the former instance, teachers may inadvertently be granted tenure by estoppel; in the latter the wrong teacher may be excessed (laid off subject to statutory recall rights) leading to reinstatement as well as a substantial back pay award.

The statutory underpinning for regular substitute service is contained in Sections 2509(1)(a), 2573 (1)(a) and 3012 (1)(a) of the Education Law, referred to collectively herein as the Jarema Act, which create what has commonly become known as “Jarema credit.” These provisions state in parallel language:

Teachers…shall be appointed by the board of education upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools for a probationary period of three years, except that in the case of a teacher who has rendered satisfactory service as a regular substitute for a period of two years…the probationary period shall be limited to one year.