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Resources, Students

Friday, December 17th, 2010 Employment in California Trial Courts

Employment Status

Employment status is the classification of the employment position and is related to benefits. There are 3 different types of employment positions for court interpreters:

  • Full-time
    Regular 40 hours per week, full benefits per region MOU (contract). Can have
  • Part-time (regular)
    Regular number of hours per week, for example half-time (every morning) or 4 days (32 hours). These are fixed days/times, the same every week.
  • As-needed
    Sometimes referred to as “Intermittent” or “F-status” in some courts, or even “Pro-tempore” (the term used for employees during the transitional period when the employment system was created). As-needed employees schedule their time with the court as if they were a contractor.

Work Assignment

Work assignment refers to the work location (courthouse) and what work is to be performed, for example traffic, dependency, pre-trial misdemeanor calendar. There are two types of assignment:

  • Permanent
    Fixed schedule, does not change except for special assignments. For example, can leave normal assignment to do a trial or preliminary hearing. Permanent usually means the same location every day, but could also be 4 days in one location and a 5th day in a second location. For example: Criminal courthouse downtown every day, except Juvenile every Tuesday.
  • Floater
    Assignment changes according to the needs of the court. Scheduling varies from court to court, and the floater may get a schedule one week or one month in advance. But assignment is often changed at the last minute.


Hiring

Of course you can apply for employment at any time and the court may decide to hire you based on its needs. Under certain conditions the courts are required by law to hire qualified applicants pursuant to the Trial Court Interpreter Employment and Labor Relations Act and our regional MOUs (employment contracts):

  • 45 Days of Service
    If you have been hired by a court as a contractor for 45 distinct days (either half or full day) within a calendar year, the court must offer you as-needed employment if you apply.
  • Use of Independent Contractors
    If a court has used independent contractors in your language for a combination of 60 service days within any six-month period, the court is obligated to maintain a posting for employment in as-needed status and hire any qualified applicant.

    • If you are interested in applying for employment in a county and you have questions about the Court’s application of these provisions, please contact a CFI steward or field representative for assistance.

See our job listings for positions announced by the courts.

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