Human Resources

Revised:  9/29/2009
UCR Local Procedures
UC Personnel Policy for Staff Members
POLICY 20: RECRUITMENT

1. RELATED POLICIES AND REFERENCES
   1. Personnel Policy 3 - Types of Appointment
   2. Personnel Policy 12 - Nondiscrimination in Employment
   3. Personnel Policy 14 - Affirmative Action
   4. Personnel Policy 20 - Recruitment
   5. Personnel Policy 21 - Appointment
   6. Personnel Policy 50 – Professional Development
   7. Personnel Policy 51 – Reduced Fee Enrollment
   8. Personnel Policy 60 - Layoff and Reduction in Time From Professional and  Support Staff Career Positions
   9. Personnel Policy 66 - Medical Separation
   10. Personnel Policy 81 - Reasonable Accommodation
   11. UCR Guidelines for Implementing Employment Provisions of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990
   12. Jobs@UCR Website
   13. UCR Recruitment and Hiring Website
   14. Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan
   15. UCR Placement Goals Website
2. PROCEDURES
   1. General
      1. Each organizational unit appoints an Affirmative Action and Compliance Officer (AACO) to monitor staff recruitment activity.
      2. Each organizational unit should establish its own internal procedure for initiating recruitment, utilizing diversity profile data and applicant/interview pool statistics, and monitoring compliance with affirmative action/diversity guidelines.  A copy is provided to Human Resources and Office of Faculty and Staff Affirmative Action (OFSAA) on an annual basis.
   2. Initiating the Recruitment
      1. The approved Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan, current Position Description, and current organizational chart are submitted to Human Resources to initiate the recruitment. Minimally, the Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan should contain a summary of essential functions, placement goals, planned advertising and outreach efforts, selection criteria and selection format, list of search committee members, and all appropriate approvals.
   3. Posting a Vacant or New Position
      1. Required Posting – list with Human Resources; unless there is an exception to recruitment (refer to IV. Exceptions to Recruitment).
         1. All Career positions
         2. Limited positions with possibility of becoming Career
         3. Contract positions with a recurring job assignment (e.g., coach, development officers)
      2. Optional Posting
         1. Limited position with no potential of becoming a career/position – an approval for non-recruitment must be requested through the organizational unit (refer to IV.  Exceptions to Recruitment).
         2. Contract appointment positions without a recurring job assignment.
      3. The Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan is prepared by the hiring authority to describe the plan for recruiting and summarize the essential functions for the vacancy announcement. 
      4. Special Recruitment Conditions
         If applicable, the following conditions will be included in the position announcement.
         1. Background Checks - An agency or Department of Justice (DOJ) background check must be completed prior to appointing an individual to a career, limited, casual-restricted or contract position whose responsibilities include "critical" element(s).  In addition, continued employment for individuals appointed to career positions whose responsibilities include "critical" element(s), is contingent upon successful completion of a background check through the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Refer to Local Procedure 21 for specifics.  For employees whose job duties include unrestricted access to radioactive materials, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s regulations require additional background check procedures, per Individuals with Unescorted Access to Radioactive Materials in Quantities of Concern Fingerprinting and Criminal History Record Check Campus Procedure.
         2. License or Certificate - If required by professional or governmental regulatory authorities.
         3. Public Driving Records - Positions requiring driving, including special driver's license.
         4. Perquisites - If meal and/or housing perquisites are provided to eligible employees as a condition of employment and for the convenience of the University.
         5. Pre-employment Drug Testing - Employees hired into safety sensitive positions will be tested for controlled substances. The offer of a position is conditional upon the candidate's successful completion of pre-employment drug testing.
         6. Pre-employment Physicals – Certain positions may require pre-employment physicals.  The offer of a position is conditional upon the candidate’s successful completion of the pre-employment physical.
      5. Scope of Recruitment
         The scope of recruitment will be determined by the Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan approved by the organizational unit, in consultation with Human Resources, with consideration to efforts that would result in a diverse applicant pool.
         1. Human Resources shall post all vacancies through the Jobs@UCR website and coordinate advertising and outreach efforts. All positions will be posted in the Human Resources Office, on the Jobs@UCR website, and in other publications and web sites as appropriate. Other advertising and posting outlets will be coordinated by Human Resources and funded by the department.
         2. Departments who have employees without computer access are required (on a weekly basis) to print the list of vacancies from the web and post in a central location.
         3. The length of the posting period shall be determined by the recruitment efforts necessary to obtain a diverse qualified pool of sufficient size.  Departments consult with their organizational unit’s Affirmative Action Compliance Officer (AACO) regarding diversity profile data and applicant/interview pool recruitment statistics.  As needed, the AACO consults with Human Resources and/or the Office of Faculty and Staff Affirmative Action to determine when a diverse applicant pool exists that will allow the hiring authority to make a meaningful choice among qualified candidates.  The minimum required recruitment periods are as follows:
            1. For PSS positions, the minimum recruitment period is two (2) weeks.
            2. For MSP positions, the minimum recruitment period is four (4) weeks.
   4. Referral of Applicants
      1. Applications/resume packages received during the required recruitment period will be considered in the applicant pool and referred to the hiring department.  These applications may be screened by Human Resources.
      2. Applications/resume packages received after the required recruitment period will be considered expressions of interest. 
      3. Upon request of the department, organizational unit, OFSAA and/or Human Resources, if a sufficient pool is not realized after the required recruitment period, the expressions of interest will be moved to the applicant pool in one or more batches on certain date(s) and time(s) as needed to achieve a sufficiently diverse and qualified pool.
      4. Minimum and preferred requirementswill be used for screening and identifying a qualified candidate pool.
      5. Applications/resumes must arrive in Human Resources by the final filing date in order to receive consideration.
      6. All applications received during the required recruitment period must be considered.
      7. For applicants not chosen for interview, the hiring authority or designate must indicate a reason for non-selection.
      8. An applicant who applied by only submitting a resume only during the recruitment process must complete the UCR Employment Application at the time of interview.
   5. Review and monitoring of applicant pools and interview shortlists – The OFSAA and the AACO will monitor applicant pools and interview shortlists.  If an applicant pool or interview shortlist is deemed problematic via statistically significant indicators, the OFSAA consults with the AACO and/or Human Resources to determine how to achieve a diverse applicant pool that will allow the hiring authority to make a meaningful choice among qualified candidates. 
   6. Work Samples - The hiring department may request the applicant to provide or complete appropriate work samples to verify critical skills identified in the minimum requirements for a specific position.
   7. Testing - Departments may test job related skills of candidates.  Any testing should be directly related to the essential functions of the position.  If testing is utilized, then the test should be administered to all finalists under the same testing conditions.  Tests may be reviewed by Human Resources prior to their use.
3. EXCEPTIONS TO RECRUITMENT
   1. Exceptions to recruitment may be appropriate as outlined in Policy 20.B. Exceptions to Recruitment.
   2. Limited Appointment - Recruitment is not necessary when a limited appointment has no potential of becoming a career appointment.  The department will indicate to the organizational unit how the candidate will be identified and how the position will be managed to ensure that the appointed employee will not work more than 1,000 hours in a 12-month period.  The organizational unit will determine if an exception to recruitment is appropriate. 
   3. Procedure
      1. Each organizational unit shall establish its own internal routing procedures for reviewing and approving requests for exceptions to recruitment.
      2. Each organizational unit shall provide a copy of the internal routing procedure for reviewing requests for exceptions to Human Resources.
      3. The organizational unit shall notify Human Resources of all approved exceptions to recruitment.
4. INTERNAL RECRUITMENT -Recruitment may be limited to internal candidates to support career progress of qualified incumbent employees but must be consistent with Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Affirmative Action objectives and result in a pool of qualified candidates. The hiring department shall request, through the organizational unit, approval from Human Resources and OFSAA for an internal recruitment.  
5. WAIVERS OF RECRUITMENT
   1. Waivers of recruitment may be granted in special circumstances consistent with equal opportunity and affirmative action objectives.  Human Resources, in consultation with the Affirmative Action Department, may waive recruitment based on the criteria listed below. It is the University's intent to grant waivers only in limited circumstances.
      1. Special circumstances
         1. Unique skills and abilities:  the candidate possesses unique skills, knowledge and abilities that were not obtained through the position for which he/she is being considered and there is no other viable candidate available
         2. Recruitment difficulties:  the candidate meets the minimum qualifications and has been identified to fill a position where recruitment difficulties for similar positions have been documented.
         3. Business necessity:  When there is a demonstrated business necessity such as significant financial liability or consequences exist.  Note:  The use of an acting or interim title may be used while a recruitment takes place.
         4. Departmental internal promotion:  In recognition of the value of University experience and in support of advancement of staff within a department, a qualified individual may be promoted to a vacant position.  To provide career development opportunities for employees and fulfill affirmative action and equal opportunity commitment, the University will give special consideration to career qualified employees who have been recommended for promotion into new or vacant positions within their department or organizational unit.  These promotional opportunities will be provided consistent with employee qualifications, achievement, development and job performance. 
         5. Health and safety:  When the University is at risk for health and safety reasons.
      2. Special Appointment Conditions
         1. In circumstances where a new academic appointment also includes the transfer of the academic appointee's employee(s) from the academic's former institution to UCR; or
         2. In circumstances where an organizational entity or program, along with specified current employees, moves to UCR.
   2. Procedure
      1. The hiring authority initiates a written request through the appropriate dean/administrative officer to Human Resources stating the reasons for the appointment action. A current position description, organizational chart, and a current resume or employment application are required.
      2. Human Resources will review the request for conformance with employment policies including appropriate classification and minimum requirements, and identifies any qualified preferential rehire candidates. Departments must consider all qualified preferential rehire candidates prior to the identified recruitment waiver candidate.
      3. If there is no successful preferential rehire candidate, Human Resources reviews whether the identified recruitment waiver candidate exceeds minimum requirements, the department's history of good faith recruitment efforts, and requests for recruitment waivers. Human Resources and OFSAA will review the resulting effect(s) on diversity in the department. A written determination is made by Human Resources and OFSAA and forwarded to the hiring authority.
6. CAREER LADDER RECRUITMENT
   1. Positions under recruitment may be advertised with multiple job titles at different levels within a single class series.
   2. The hiring authority defines, in consultation with Human Resources as needed, the requirements for each level of the advertised position
   3. The hiring authority ensures that recruitment is undertaken for candidates who possess, at minimum, the qualifications necessary to meet the minimum requirements for the lowest advertised level.  Candidates may meet the minimum requirements of any advertised level.
   4. For the selected candidate, the hiring authority determines the appropriate job title/level, based on the qualifications of the candidate.
   5. If the candidate is not hired at the highest level, the hiring authority may prepare a written development plan to include the following elements;
      1. Knowledge and skills required to advance to the next higher advertised title/level (the next higher level/title must have been recruited for in the career ladder recruitment from which the employee was selected.
      2. The development activities to be undertaken by the employee to acquire the additional knowledge and skills
      3. How the development activities facilitate the employee’s transition in meeting the responsibilities of the higher job title/level
      4. The availability of resources necessary to facilitate professional development activities
      5. The impact of development activities on employee’s current workload and other employees in the department
      6. Proposed timelines for evaluation of the employee’s progress in acquiring the knowledge and skills required for reclassification
   6. The development plan is submitted to the department head for approval and the organizational unit (if required).
   7. Once the development plan has been approved, the employee and his or her supervisor meet at mutually agreeable intervals to discuss the employee’s progress towards attaining the plan objectives. 
   8. If the employee has met the plan requirements and has acquired the higher-level qualifications and there is satisfactory performance, the supervisor forwards a recommendation for reclassification to the organizational unit.  The request would include:
      1. Copy of the original Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan
      2. The incumbent’s previous job description
      3. The incumbent’s new job description
      4. The approved development plan, including completion dates for all completed activities
   9. Upon approval, and per organizational unit guidelines, the organizational unit will either approve the request for reclassification and notify Human Resources or forward the request to Human Resources for approval.
   10. An employee may be reclassified within the same class series and department or organizational unit for which the original recruitment was conducted.
7. RESPONSIBILITY
   1. Hiring Supervisor
      1. Develop recruitment plans and conduct recruitments that show good faith efforts to broaden diversity.
      2. Prepare required recruitment materials (position description, Employee Requisition and Recruitment Plan, organizational chart, etc.)
   2. Department
      1. Approve recruitment plans and ensure recruitments show good faith efforts
      2. Ensure job listings are provided to employees without computer access
      3. Ensure the UCR Employment Application is completed by each applicant selected for interview.
      4. Ensure reasons for non-selection are indicated for all applicants not chosen for interview.
      5. Prepare requests for:
         1. Waivers of recruitment
         2. Internal recruitments
         3. Exceptions to recruitment for limited appointments
      6. Approve assignment of an employee who has completed a University sponsored Internship Program
      7. Approve development plans for employees hired into positions that are Career Ladder Recruitments
   3. Organizational Units
      1. Appoint an Affirmative Action Compliance Officer (AACO) who is responsible for ensuring Affirmative Action/Diversity guidelines are followed for searches within the organization.
      2. Monitor applicant pools and interview shortlists and consult with OFSAA and Human Resources as needed.
      3. Establish organizational recruitment procedures and forward to OFSAA and Human Resources on an annual basis.
      4. Establish internal routing procedures for reviewing and approving requests for exceptions to recruitment.
      5. Consistent review and approval of appropriate recruitment plans, exceptions to recruitment, internal recruitments and career ladder recruitments.
      6. Forward reviewed requests for waivers of recruitment and requests for internal recruitment to Human Resources for approval.
      7. Hold departments accountable for good faith recruitment efforts.
      8. Approve exceptions to recruitment for limited with no possibility of becoming career appointments.
      9. Notify Human Resources and Affirmative Action of approved exceptions to recruitment.
   4. Affirmative Action
      1. Provide diversity profile data, availability, and placement goals and appropriate consultation and assistance during the recruitment process.
      2. Co-approve with Human Resources requests for recruitment waivers and requests for internal recruitments.
      3. Provide training to AACOs.
      4. Advise departments on how to achieve a diverse and qualified applicant pool.
   5. Human Resources
      1. Provide advice and assistance to departments and organizational units on recruitment policy, procedure and practices.
      2. Co-approve with OFSAA requests for recruitment waivers and requests for internal recruitments.
      3. Provide recommendations to organizational units for reclassification of employees hired into Career Ladder Recruitments.
      4. Ensure special recruitment conditions are applied to positions when appropriate.
      5. Advise departments on how to achieve a diverse and qualified applicant pool.