California teacher taking time off for breast cancer treatment forced to pay for her own substitute due to state law

Parent says she is 'an incredible teacher and that’s not fair'

One teacher said they spent at least £5,000 over the past few years (Getty)

A California teacher on medical leave for breast cancer treatment has to pay for not only her medical bills, but for the substitute who is teaching her students while she’s out of the classroom.

Due to a state policy, all teachers receive ten days of paid sick leave. Anything beyond that, for another 100 sick days, the cost of the substitute teacher will be deducted from the teachers salary.

Beyond that, teachers are able to pull from a bank of donated time, up to 85 days without a deduction from their paycheck.

The average daily cost for a substitute in San Francisco is $203.16, says school district spokeswoman Laura Dudnick.

The average teacher salary in the district $82,024.27, not including benefits. The national average public school teacher salary in the US is $58,353.

“This reflects California Education Code language related to extended sick leave that applies to all other school districts in California,” Ms Dudnick said, in a statement referring to the 1976 law the policy is rooted in.

“This is not unique to San Francisco. This is not a district-only rule.”

The teacher is choosing to remain anonymous to protect her privacy during a trying time, but district parents are coming forward to contest what they see as an unfair policy.

District parent Elia Hernandez told CNN: “She’s an incredible teacher and that’s not fair. That’s crazy!” regarding the policy. Another parent, Abby Hipps, said: “She’s one of the best teachers. It’s terrible.”

Another teacher in the district was concerned about how this policy would affect her if she became ill. “It makes me worry if that were to happen to me, I have to plan accordingly and that’s not fair you know.”