Ask The Locksmith Question:
I work for the (a California) County Superintendent of Schools and do all the lockwork. I am registered. However, I'm not getting recognized for my trade. I'm the only person who does the locks for (this) County. I would like to know if (this) County Superintendent of Schools is exemp from having a licensed or registered locksmith? Thank you.

Hi there...

Good question!

I'm not sure I completely understand what you mean by "not getting recognized for my trade", but the essential issue of your question is as follows:

Are Institutional Locksmiths required by California State Law to be licensed (registered)?
-And-
Are Institutional Employers required in any way to hire only licensed locksmiths?

The answer to both questions as stated above is no (Or the way you asked it, Yes). With qualifiers:

BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS CODE SECTION 6980.10-6980.15

6980.10. No person shall engage within this state in the activities of a locksmith as defined in subdivision (j) of Section 6980, unless the person holds a valid locksmith license, is registered pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, or is exempt from the provisions of this chapter.

6980.12. This chapter does not apply to the following persons:
(a) n/a
(b) Employees who are industrial or institutional locksmiths, provided that the employees provide locksmith services only to a single employer that does not provide locksmith services for hire to the public.

6980.12(b) applies directly to your situation, and your employers right to treat you as an employee, rather than a licensed locksmith, so long as you do NO work outside of the grounds of the various school districts under his/her control, and that none of your work product is sold to, used exclusively by, or installed at; any location not under the direct control and ownership of the school district (meaning a public building not part of the school district properties, and used by the public only).

For example, while you can be hired unlicensed, and work unlicensed on school property, you could not be asked to rekey personal residences of administrators/teachers/other employees, do repair or installation work for same, or any of the above for a public business not officially part of the district without a license. If a locksmith working for the district is unlicensed, and IS asked to do any of these things as a part of or condition of employment, they are required to obtain and hold a valid state license, PRIOR to the work being performed, and the schools exemption is disallowed.

In short, while I certainly approve of you taking the time and the ethical responsibility to be licensed, the school superintendent does not need to care one whit one way or the other, nor compensate you for doing/being so. He/she could, within the law, dump you and your skills, and hire a 17 year old ex hardware store employee for the same job, and not be impacted by the law one way or the other.

As far as "not getting recognized for my trade", and what I think you mean by that... Having a license doesn't mean a thing in an institutional capacity, but it does give you the option of being more attractive to any reputable locksmith company that hires according to the law. And so long as your skills are commensurate, more bargaining power in wage earning. Unfortunately, the longer you're in an institutional capability, you also run up against the (fair or not) bias against hiring institutional locksmiths within the regular locksmith trade. Just thoughts to consider.

Hope this helps, and please feel free to write with any follow up questions or clarification questions you may have.

Cheers!

Kim

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