Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 69C of chapter 164 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

The contract shall provide:

(a) that the cadet engineer shall, by a date to be specified, begin or continue attendance at a duly accredited college or university having a course of study leading to a degree of bachelor of science in engineering or shall begin or continue attendance at a duly accredited community college or other educational institution, having a course of study in the sciences or engineering and who shall thereafter begin or continue attendance at a duly accredited college or university, having a course of study leading to a bachelor of science in engineering. The contract may, in the discretion of the municipal light board, prescribe certain minimum courses of study to be undertaken by the cadet engineer in such community college, college, university or other educational institution;

(b) that the cadet engineer shall, throughout the course of his community college, college, university or other educational institution training as aforesaid, engage in work to be known as on the job training, at the plant under the supervision and direction of the manager or his duly authorized representative for such number of weeks during regular community college, college, university or other educational institution vacations as the municipal light board may determine. The compensation for on the job training shall be at an hourly rate to be determined by the municipal light board;

(c) that the cadet engineer shall, throughout his course of study at a community college, college, university or other educational institution as aforesaid, maintain such minimum academic standing in such community college, college, university or other educational institution as may be prescribed in the contract by the municipal light board;

(d) that the cadet engineer shall, upon final completion of his course of study at a community college, college, university or other educational institution as aforesaid, engage in work to be known as graduate on the job training on a full-time basis at the plant under the supervision and direction of the manager or his duly authorized representative for a period of time to be determined by such municipal light board and specified in the contract, which period of time shall in no event exceed a period of five years; provided, however, that the compensation for such graduate on the job training shall be at an hourly rate to be determined by the municipal light board;

(e) that the cadet engineer shall not work for any other person, corporation or municipality until such time as he has completed graduate on the job training as prescribed in the contract; provided, however, that the municipal light board may credit all or any part of time spent by a cadet engineer in active service in the armed forces of the United States as part of the cadet engineer's prescribed graduate on the job training;

(f) that the city or town shall pay all or such portion of the cadet engineer's tuition at the community college, college, university or other educational institution attended by him as aforesaid, as the municipal light board shall determine and prescribe in such contract. The term tuition shall include the actual cost of all books or laboratory or similar equipment that may be required by the cadet engineer in his course of study;

(g) that the municipal light board may, in the event that the cadet engineer at any time fails to maintain his attendance or academic standing in the community college, college, university or other educational institution as prescribed in the contract or in any other way fails to perform his obligations under such contract, terminate the contract by written notice to the cadet engineer; provided, however, that such remedy shall not be deemed to be conclusive and shall not prejudice any other remedies which the contracting city or town may have for breach of such contract, whether at law or in equity.

SECTION 2. Section 69D of said chapter 164, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the fourth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

An applicant for appointment as a cadet engineer shall be a resident of the contracting city or town, a graduate of a duly accredited high school, not less than seventeen nor more than twenty-five years of age and shall have been accepted for admission to or be enrolled in a duly accredited college or university having a course of study leading to a degree of bachelor of science in engineering, or shall have been accepted for admission to or be enrolled in a duly accredited community college or other educational institution, having a course of study in the sciences or engineering which courses would be accepted at a college or university having a course of study leading to a degree of bachelor of science in engineering.

SECTION 3. Section 69E of said chapter 164, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the third paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

The employment of a cadet engineer in graduate on the job training shall not be subject to civil service law and rules but such cadet engineer shall be subject to and entitled to the benefit of retirement laws and pensions, and deductions shall be made from his salary and paid into the contributory retirement system of the city or town in accordance with the provisions of the contributory retirement laws. The on the job training period of any cadet engineer who continues in the employ of the contracting city or town as a permanent full-time employee shall be considered as creditable service for purposes of retirement laws, pension laws and other laws pertaining to municipal employees; provided, however, that such cadet engineer shall pay into the retirement fund such sums as may be required by the retirement board to acquire such creditable service; and, provided, further, that time in attendance at a community college, college, university or other educational institution shall not be considered as creditable service under this section.