Seymour

—Plaintiff is a retired public school employee; defendants are the school district for which she worked, the district superintendent, and the school board. Defendants appeal from a summary judgment in plaintiff’s favor to the extent that it awards plaintiff a lump sum for vacation she earned but did not use during her employment. We conclude that a lump sum payment to plaintiff for vacation earned, except that earned in the months actually worked during the last year, violates state constitutional prohibitions against extra compensation for public employees. (Cal. Const., art. IV, § 17; art. XI, § 10.) Therefore, we reverse that portion of the summary judgment.

Plaintiff cross-appeals from an earlier order sustaining the individual defendants’ demurrer without leave to amend as to one cause of action. We conclude that the trial court abused its discretion by denying leave to amend.

Factual Background and Procedural History

Located in the rural Santa Cruz Mountains in Santa Clara County, the Lakeside Joint School District consists of one elementary school. In Novem ber 1965, plaintiff Helen Seymour began working part time for the district. The following summer, she…