The University of Memphis

Advertising and Hiring for Non-Faculty Position Openings

POLICIES

• Recruiting Process
• Promotions and Transfer of Current Employees
• General

• Application for Employment
• Begin Request to Fill

Hiring officials have the ability to request to fill position openings via workForum, the University's paperless applicant tracking system. In addition, all approvals and recommendations related to the request are built into the online workflow which is forwarded to various approving authorities, with the Department of Human Resources-Employment being the final review before posting. 

Application Deadlines-The advertising period for non-exempt, hourly paid positions is 5 days, and for exempt, monthly paid positions,10 days. All positions are electronically removed from the system once the advertising period has expired.

Advertising - All job openings are automatically advertised in workForum and via the internet with HigherEdJobs.com. Departments will decide, based on funding, to advertise positions externally, i.e., newspapers, journals, magazines, etc. with final approval from Affirmative Action. 

Recruiting/Referral Incentives - The university may offer incentives to faculty and staff who refer applicants for open positions, provided they are selected and are successful in the job for a measurable length of time. Refer to the Employment web page for current information on recruiting/referral incentive programs: http://bf.memphis.edu/hr/employment/.

Testing and Interviews – All applicable tests for clerical positions will be administered by the Department of Human Resources-Employment. Once identified, top candidates considered for the position will be scheduled for an appointment to take the required skills assessment.

Interviews- Employment Specialists in conjuction with the hiring officials will identify top candidates for interviews. Applicants whose qualifications best fit the position specifications will be referred to the hiring department. 

References and Background Checks - The Department of Human Resources-Employment will conduct appropriate reference and background checks on recommended applicants.  All investigations, disclosures, and notifications will be in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Equal Employment /Affirmative Action Compliance Officer’s Review – All recommendations by hiring officials will be reviewed and are subject to approval by the University Affirmative Action Officer.  If required, the Affirmative Action office will submit the recommendation to the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) for approval. No offer may be made until these steps have been completed.

Offers of Employment and Formal Appointments - The Department of Human Resources-Employment will notify successful candidates and make the formal job offer by telephone. Upon acceptance, an introductory letter and contract will be mailed to the selectee. Contracts will be valid on the first day of employment. 

Eligibility to Apply for Openings – Any employee who wishes to apply for other University positions may do so except in two cases:

• The employee is in a formal probationary level of the Performance Improvement Process for work related deficiency.
• The employee has not completed at least six months continuous service in his or her current position or the same department.  This waiting period has been established to provide protection for the hiring department whose budget has borne the expense of recruiting and training the new employee.

If a current employee wishes to apply for an opening and has not completed the requisite six months continuous service in the current position, he or she may apply only if provided a waiver. However, a waiver will not be required if the employee wishes to apply for a position in his or her current department.

Waiver Process

• The employee must discuss the request with the immediate supervisor, specifying the reasons for wanting to apply for the open position. 
• The supervisor must obtain permission from the department manager or other individual who is responsible for the budget that will bear the expense if the position must be readvertised and filled. 
• Upon securing approval from the appropriate supervisor and department head or budget official, the written request for waiver is submitted to the Assistant Vice President for Human Resources for review and joint decision with the department. The purpose of this review is to ensure that the employee is in good standing relative to basic job behavior and performance.

Application Process - Current employees will follow the same application process as described in the above Recruiting Process. 

NOTE:  Employees who apply for positions in lower grades or the same grades may not be eligible for a salary increase.

Notice to Department - All employees who accept other positions with the University must give their department/activity head at least two weeks notice, although preferably administrative/professional employees will give a one-month notice. The department or activity heads, at their discretion, may waive the notice requirement. A present employee who has applied for another open University position will not be rejected solely because of this notice requirement.

New Employee Orientation – All regular, full-time employees and regular part-time employees working at least 80% must attend a New Employee Orientation during which University policies are explained.  Benefits enrollment is administered at this orientation also.

Probationary Employment Period - All new employees are required to complete a minimum six-month probationary period.  During this period, their work will be continually reviewed and evaluated to determine if continuation of employment with the University is appropriate. If deficiencies are noted, new employees may be terminated during the six-month probationary period or the probationary period may be extended.  Supervisors should contact Human Resources for assistance with these decisions. As notification of successful completion of the probationary period, the supervisor shall conduct a formal performance appraisal with the new employee, obtain his or her signature, and submit the form to Human Resources for insertion into the employee’s file.

Nepotism - The State nepotism law is designed to prevent occurrences whereby relatives who are employees of the State are in a direct supervisory line with respect to each other.  In order to guard against these practices the State prohibits governmental employees who are relatives from being placed within the same line of supervision where one relative is responsible for supervising the job performance or work activity of another relative. A relative is defined as:

• parent, foster parent, parent-in-law, child, spouse, brother, foster brother, sister, foster sister, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, brother-in-law, daughter-in-law, or other family member who resides in the same household. 
• See the complete TBR Guideline on Nepotism at: http://www.tbr.edu/policies/default.aspx?id=1766

https://workforum.memphis.edu 

UM1495 Rev.4 -- updated June 15, 2009
UM1495 Rev.3 -- updated August 26, 2008
UM1495 Rev.2 -- updated February 27, 2008
UM1495 Rev.1 -- updated December 7, 2005