WNMU POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
STAFF
General
Western New Mexico University is committed to ensuring equal employment opportunity, which means that all persons will be required to compete for positions on the basis of job-related criteria and qualifications. The process outlined in this policy is designed to assist in hiring the best-qualified individuals for available positions and to support WNMU’s mission of excellence. Adherence to this process should ensure that sufficient effort has been made to include members from diverse gender, cultural, racial and ethnic groups in the pool of applicants considered for interview for available positions. A broad pool will allow the University to establish diversity within WNMU’s Affirmative Action Plan and furnish positive and successful role models for WNMU students. Whenever it is practical and consistent with promoting the three goals listed here, the University should try to fill new positions through an internal screening process.
This policy describes the recruitment and hiring procedures, including advertising, interviewing, and selection for all University staff except when an internal screening is conducted. Recruitment and hiring procedures vary for Exempt and Non-Exempt employees. Exempt employees are paid on a salary basis and do not receive overtime. The majority of exempt employees serve in an executive, administrative or professional capacity. These exemptions are based on the specific job descriptions and duties of the employees involved. Non-exempt employees are paid on an hourly basis and receive overtime pay in accordance with University policy and applicable state and federal law.
The exempt and non-exempt status of each position will be determined by the Human Resources Director according to the FLSA. For all positions, the Human Resources Department with the hiring supervisor assumes the major responsibility for creating the applicant pool, screening applicants, and maintaining documentation of the process.
Objectives
The goal of the University’s recruitment and hiring process is to achieve an excellent and balanced workforce with representation and participation from all of the diverse sectors of our society. The primary objectives of the process are:
· To attract and hire the best qualified candidates, matching the qualifications of the candidate to the needs and expectations of the hiring unit.
· To assure an expeditious placement of qualified candidates into vacant positions.
· To increase participation of qualified candidates from underrepresented groups in applicant pools.
· To ensure fair and equitable treatment of all candidates in the recruitment and hiring process.
Noncompetitive Hiring
The University uses a competitive recruitment and hiring process; however, from time-to-time there may be circumstances when a noncompetitive process is used to fill a position temporarily. Whenever a noncompetitive process is used to fill a position, the department must submit a Temporary Contract Request Form to the Human Resources (HR) Department. The Temporary Contract Request Form will be routed to HR upon the acquisition of all approval signatures (i.e. Department Supervisor, Division Vice President, Vice President of Business Affairs, and Grants Accountant when applicable). For temporary positions that require advertising, an Employment Requisition Form (ERF) must be sent to HR upon acquisition of all approval signatures. This process may be used for all temporary situations including Acting and Interim positions. An employee is considered to be in an acting position while temporarily filling a position where the regular incumbent is expected to return. An employee is considered to be in an interim position while filling a position for which a screening is to be conducted. The fringe benefits of regular employees that temporarily fill a position in acting or interim capacity will not be affected.
The HR Department maintains a pool of temporary employees for many entry-level positions and is responsible for recruiting, interviewing, selecting and referring these employees when a vacancy exists that requires immediate assistance. To request temporary services, the hiring supervisor should send a completed Temporary Contract Request Form to HR for processing. The HR Department will send the hiring supervisor a list of qualified candidates from the pool. If the hiring supervisor and the Director of Human Resources are in agreement with the selected qualified candidate, the candidate may be referred directly to the department with the approval of the appropriate vice president. If the hiring supervisor knows of a qualified candidate he/she should refer that candidate to the Human Resources Department to complete an application. Temporary employees will normally work no longer than twelve (12) months. However, a contract may be extended with proper justification and approval.
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Layoff Roster
A layoff occurs when the employee is involuntarily separated due to a department restructure or lack of funding for the position. Persons involuntarily separated will be placed on a roster maintained by HR and will be given first priority in filling any vacant position at the University of similar or lower classification to the position they held prior to layoff for a period of two (2) years. If there is more than one (1) individual on the layoff roster that satisfies the minimum requirements for the vacant position, eligible individuals will be considered in order of original date of hire.
Confidentiality of Employment Applications
All persons involved in the personnel recruitment process at WNMU shall keep confidential the identity of candidates for employment and the deliberations of those responsible for screening candidates, except as provided in this policy. This policy applies not only to those with a designated role in the screening process but also to any other employee of the University who may become aware of the identity of a candidate or the details of the deliberations. For purposes of this policy “candidates” shall include either applicants or nominees for positions at WNMU.
The identity and resume/vitae of a candidate shall be made public in response to a request and only when interviews have been scheduled between that candidate and the hiring supervisor or between the candidate and the screening committee members. Copies of the resume/vitae will be provided to the appropriate Vice President and the Screening Committee Chair. In cases where an open forum is scheduled, a brief biography of the candidates will be prepared by the screening committee chair and distributed to each department. For purposes of this policy the term “interviews” shall include meetings or discussions in which the hiring supervisor and the screening committee members participate, either at the same time or in a series, and shall include discussions by telephone.
All candidates who are invited for interviews, as defined herein, shall first be advised of this policy and shall be given the opportunity either to continue in the screening or to withdraw. The names and resumes/vitae of candidates who withdraw shall be kept confidential. All requests for the names of candidates for University employment shall be referred to the Human Resources Department. Under all circumstances, letters of reference, the deliberations of the screening committee, and other similar evaluative materials shall be kept confidential with respect to all candidates and shall be returned to HR upon selection and acceptance of the position by the candidate.
Exempt positions require a screening committee. All University employees are requested to participate as members of screening committees from time to time. Participation on screening committees is a vital component of duties and responsibilities for each University position and is considered to contribute to the good of the University community. The hiring authority shall recommend employees to serve on a screening committee. All proposed committees shall be reviewed for approval by the appropriate Vice President and the AA/EEO Officer. Each committee shall have a minimum of three members. An attempt will be made to include members of minority groups, women, or under-represented groups, and members from the department involved in the screening. Community or student members may also be included on screening committees as appropriate. Persons holding the following positions are exempt from participation on screening committees: Director of Human Resources, Internal Auditor, AA/EEO Officer, and the President. The AA/EEO Officer will meet with the screening committee.
To start the recruitment process, the hiring supervisor contacts Human Resources for an Employment Packet. The packet will contain the following forms where applicable: ERF; job description (for established positions), previously approved applicant grid, previously approved reference questions and interview questions; Interview Request Form; Contract Request Form; Checklist; Budget Revision Form; Recruitment and Hiring Policy and Procedures, and any other applicable information. If established questions need updating or are nonexistent, the screening committee should work with the hiring supervisor in creating new questions to be submitted for approval to the AA/EEO Officer. Any changes to the recommended screening committee list will be communicated in writing to HR by the AA/EEO Officer for inclusion in the job file.
Upon receipt of the ERF, Human Resources will prepare a draft copy of the advertisement and forward it with all support documentation to the AA/EEO Officer, the hiring supervisor, division Vice President, Grants Accountant when applicable, and the Vice President of Business Affairs. The vacancy announcement will identify the job, salary information, minimum educational and experience qualifications, application deadlines, and lists of required information to be included with the candidate’s application, and how candidates may receive additional information
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related to the position. Positions will be posted for a minimum of six (6) working days for both internal and external positions including posting on Western New Mexico University's job web site.
Each announcement will include a statement of the University’s commitment to equal employment opportunity. Positions may be advertised as anticipated vacancies if there is uncertainty about funding. The hiring supervisor will review for recommended changes and forward to the Division Vice President. The ad should be forwarded to the next reviewing entity as stated on the cover memo until all parties have made their recommendations. The ad should then be returned to HR. Advertisements containing extensive changes will be re-routed for final review. ERFs will be processed in the order received except when a critical need exists within a department as determined by the Human Resources Director. HR will be responsible for maintaining the job file, monitoring the progress of the hiring process for timeliness, and reporting to the President weekly on the status of each vacancy.
The AA/EEO Officer will be responsible for contacting the screening committee members and the hiring supervisor to arrange a mutually convenient time for orientation. The AA/EEO Officer will address the screening committee on EEO and Affirmative Action policies and laws. The HR Director will address the committee chair on the hiring policy.
HR prescreens applicants for minimum qualifications and forwards the qualified applicant files and roster to the AA/EEO Officer for a determination of an adequate applicant pool and utilization. The AA/EEO Officer returns the applications to HR for release to the hiring authority. Applicants will be notified by HR as to the status of their application. Applications of candidates not meeting the minimum qualifications as stated in the ad will not be released.
Departments may not test individuals unless the test has been validated as required by 41 Code of Federal Regulation #60-03 (i.e. content validity). Testing is defined as any verbal or pen and paper tests, such as composition or writing, and skill tests, such as typing or word processing. Departments may administer other test(s) only if validated and notice of intent to test including a copy of the test is filed in advance with the Department of Human Resources. Exceptions to this policy are confidential national standardized tests such as those used by a Police Department. HR can test candidates upon hiring supervisor's request. Composition of test should be appropriate to individual job description/classification.
HR will notify the screening committee chairperson when the applications of qualified candidates are ready to be released for review. Reference checks will be conducted by the Screening Committee. The hiring supervisor and appropriate VP may review the applications prior to submitting the approved Interview Request Form and the scheduling of the interviews. Once the screening committee has determined via the qualifications grid which candidates will be interviewed (usually three to five), they will notify HR by using the Interview Request Form (which requires the hiring supervisor and appropriate VP approval) supplied to them in the interview packet. HR will be given at least one week to schedule interviews with local candidates; two weeks for candidates that are not local. HR will then arrange the interviews with all involved parties. HR will distribute copies of the interview schedule. One copy will be sent to the screening committee chair. The chairperson will be responsible for sharing the information with other members of the committee. Telephone interviews will be conducted when it is deemed necessary by the screening committee and in agreement with the candidate (if offered to one candidate then it will be offered to all candidates).
The screening committee shall collectively interview those finalists who accept an invitation for an on-site interview. The hiring supervisor and/or appropriate vice president may observe the interview. Additional activities may include an independent interview with the hiring supervisor, Vice President or President, a campus tour and an open forum in which interested faculty, students, staff or community members may meet the candidates. If further reference checks are deemed necessary, the screening committee shall arrange to obtain such information and will be responsible for creating additional questions that must be approved by the AA/EEO Officer. The division vice president may conduct additional reference checks at their discretion.
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An exit interview will be conducted with each interviewee by the AA/EEO Officer. When the AA/EEO Officer is not available, exit interviews will take place with a designee. In the rare event that both of the above mentioned persons are unavailable, the candidate will be given an Exit Interview Form by the Director of HR to be mailed back to the AA/EEO Officer by the candidate.
Regular full-time employees are granted reasonable time off with pay to attend open forums or screening committee activities which have been scheduled during their regular work hours by the HR Department. Employees should notify their supervisors in advance of such interviews. If the needs of the department are such that time off cannot be granted at the time of the scheduled interview, the applicant’s supervisor should notify HR to allow for other arrangements to be made.
After the interview is completed, the screening committee shall identify in writing to the hiring supervisor the strengths and weaknesses of the candidates and identify any they consider unacceptable and the reasons for that decision. A copy of the strengths and weaknesses should be sent to the AA/EEO Officer and the appropriate vice president. Comments must be job-related and specific to the qualifications of the candidate compared to those required for the position. The candidates should not be ranked. All materials should be given to HR upon completion. The hiring supervisor can request to review interview notes, application materials, reference check information, and select the candidate that best matches the department’s needs. The hiring supervisor should submit his recommendation for hire to the appropriate vice president and return all materials to HR once the candidate has accepted the position. After an offer has been extended and accepted, HR is responsible for contacting all unsuccessful candidates for the position in writing.
The Board of Regents selects the President. For all other positions, depending on the level of the position, the President or the appropriate Vice President will make the final hiring decision. Once a final selection has been approved, the vice president or designees will forward the decision in writing to the HR department.
Exceptions to this procedure are as follows:
The hiring of the President of the University is within the sole discretion of the Board of Regents. The Board will determine appropriate recruiting, advertising, and screening procedures, taking the business and Affirmative Action needs of the University into consideration and will hire the candidate for President that they believe is the most qualified candidate. Such hiring will be done in accordance with NMSA 1978 14-2-1 (1999).
The hiring of the Internal Auditor of the University is within the sole discretion of the Board of Regents. The Board will determine appropriate recruiting, advertising, and screening procedures, taking the business and Affirmative Action needs of the University into consideration and will hire the candidate that they believe is the most qualified candidate.
The hiring of the Vice-Presidents of the University, the AA/EEO Officer, Special Assistant to the President, the Executive Assistant to the President/Board of Regents, the Director of Public Information and Community Relations, and the Director of Alumni Affairs of the University is within the sole discretion of the President. The
President will determine appropriate recruiting, advertising, and screening procedures, taking the business and Affirmative Action needs of the University into consideration and will hire the candidate for Vice President, AA/EEO Officer, Special Assistant to the President, Executive Assistant to the President/Board of Regents, Director of Public Information and Community Relations, and the Director of Alumni Affairs of the University that he/she believes is the most qualified.
As soon as the contract request to hire has been approved by the appropriate vice president and received in HR, the hiring supervisor will be contacted by HR to make an official job offer and agree on a tentative starting date. Hiring departments must allow adequate time for document processing prior to a new employee start date. If the candidate does not accept the position, the hiring supervisor will contact HR to determine the appropriate course of action.
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Upon receipt of an accepted offer, a Contract Request Form is to be completed by the hiring supervisor and sent to HR. The Human Resources Department will be responsible for generating the contract once the completed request
is received in HR. HR will be given at least one week to process the contract prior to the employee's starting date.
Once the contract signed by the appropriate vice president has been received in HR, new employees will be notified to attend new employee orientation the first Thursday after their date of hire. No employee is to work without a signed contract. Verification of employability in the United States will be handled by the Department of Human
Resources by completion of the I-9 Form. Employees not able to supply the proper documentation within three (3)
working days from their start date will not be permitted to continue working. HR will contact the hiring supervisor if the employee has failed to supply the necessary documents.
New Employee Orientation
New employee orientation is scheduled each Thursday morning in the HR Department. New employees are required to attend orientation the first Thursday following their hire date unless a hardship exists. In that case, HR will arrange an alternate orientation time with the employee. HR will advise the hiring supervisor of the date the new employee is scheduled for orientation. The hiring supervisor in turn notifies the new employee and provides time off to participate in the orientation program. As part of the orientation process, each new employee is briefed on certain University policies, completes benefit election forms, is given a job description and staff handbook, and is afforded the opportunity to participate in a question and answer session regarding policies and benefits. A list of attendees will be forwarded to the Loss Control Officer for completion of safety training and to the AA/EEO Officer for completion of harassment training. Copies of all benefit forms will be forwarded to the Payroll Office.
Recruitment – Non-Exempt Positions and Athletic Coaching Staff
Screening committees are not to be used for non-exempt employees and Athletic coaching staff. To start the recruitment process, the hiring supervisor contacts Human Resources for an Employment Packet. The packet will contain the following forms where applicable: ERF; job description (for established positions), previously approved applicant grid, reference questions and interview questions; Interview Reimbursement Form; Interview Request Form; Contract Request Form; Checklist; Budget Revision Form; Recruitment and Hiring Policy and Procedures, and any other applicable information. If established questions need updating or are nonexistent, the hiring supervisor should formulate questions to be approved by the AA/EEO Officer.
Upon receipt of the ERF, Human Resources will prepare a draft copy of the advertisement and forward it with all support documentation to the hiring supervisor, grants accountant when applicable, the appropriate vice president, and the Vice President of Business Affairs. The vacancy announcement will identify the job, salary range, minimum educational and experience qualifications, application deadlines, and lists of required information to be included with the candidate’s application, and how candidates may receive additional information related to the position. Positions will be posted for a minimum of six (6) working day including posting on Western New Mexico University's job web site. Each announcement will include a statement of the University’s commitment to equal employment opportunity. Positions may be advertised as anticipated vacancies if there is uncertainty about funding. The hiring supervisor will review all recommended changes and forward to the appropriate vice president for final approval. Advertisements containing extensive changes will be re-routed for final review. Packets will be processed in the order received except when a critical need exists within a department as determined by the Human Resources Director. HR will be responsible for maintaining the job file, monitoring the progress of the hiring process for timeliness, and reporting to the President weekly on the status of each vacancy.
Human Resources prescreens applicants for minimum qualifications and forwards the qualified applicant files and roster to the AA/EEO Officer for a determination of an adequate applicant pool and utilization. Applicants will be notified by HR as to the status of their application. Applications of candidates not meeting the minimum qualifications as stated in the ad will not be released to hiring supervisor.
Departments may not test individuals unless the test has been validated as required by 41 Code of Federal Regulation #60-03 (i.e. content validity). Testing is defined as any verbal or pen and paper tests, such as WNMU
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composition or writing, and skill tests, such as typing or word processing. Departments may administer other test(s)
only if validated and a notice of intent to test including a copy of the test is filed in advance with the Department of Human Resources. Exceptions to this policy are confidential national standardized tests such as those used by a
Police Department. HR can test candidates upon hiring supervisor's request. Composition of test should be appropriate to individual job description/classification.
HR will notify the hiring supervisor when the applications are ready to be reviewed. Once the hiring supervisor has determined via the qualifications grid which candidates will be interviewed (usually less than five), he/she will notify HR by using the Interview Request Form supplied to them in the interview packet. HR will then arrange the interviews with all involved parties. Telephone interviews will be conducted when it is deemed necessary by the hiring supervisor and in agreement with the candidate. The hiring supervisor and/or designee will interview the candidates.
An exit interview will be conducted with each interviewee by the AA/EEO Officer. When the AA/EEO Officer is not available, exit interviews will take place with a designee. In the rare event that both of the above mentioned persons are unavailable, the candidate will be given an Exit Interview Form by the director of HR to be mailed to the AA/EEO Officer.
Regular full-time employees are granted reasonable time off with pay to attend job interviews which have been scheduled during their regular work hours by HR. Employees should notify their supervisors in advance of such interviews. If the needs of the department are such that time off cannot be granted at the time of the scheduled interview, the applicant’s supervisor should notify HR to allow for other arrangements to be made.
After the interview is completed, the hiring supervisor shall identify in writing to his/her Vice President the strengths and weaknesses of the candidates and identify any they consider unacceptable and the reasons for that decision. A copy should be sent to the AA/EEO Officer and the appropriate vice president. Comments must be job-related and specific to the qualifications of the candidate compared to those required for the position. The candidates should not be ranked. As soon as the contract request to hire has been approved by the Vice President and received in HR, HR will contact the hiring supervisor to make an official job offer and agree on a tentative starting date. If the candidate does not accept the position, the supervisor will contact HR to determine the appropriate course of action. All materials should be returned to Human Resources after an offer has been accepted. The Human Resources Department is responsible for contacting all unsuccessful candidates for the position in writing.
The final authority for making hiring decisions shall at all times reside with the University President or his/her designee.
Upon receipt of an accepted offer, a Contract Request Form is to be completed by the hiring supervisor with Vice President approval is to be sent to Human Resources. The Human Resources Department will be responsible for generating the contract once the completed request is received in HR. The Human Resources Department will be given at least one week to process the contract prior to the employee's starting date. Upon approval, the candidate will be notified by Human Resources when to attend new employee orientation. No employee is to work without a signed contract. Verification of employability in the United States will be handled by the Department of Human Resources by completion of the I-9 Form. Employee’s not able to supply the proper documentation within three (3) working days will not be permitted to work. Human Resources will contact the hiring supervisor if the employee has failed to supply the necessary documents.
New Employee Orientation
New employee orientation is scheduled each Thursday morning in the HR Department. New employees are required to attend orientation the first Thursday following their hire date unless a hardship exists. In that case, HR will arrange an alternate orientation time with the employee. HR will advise the hiring supervisor of the date the new employee is scheduled for orientation. The hiring supervisor in turn notifies the new employee and provides
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time off to participate in the orientation program. As part of the orientation process, each new employee is briefed on certain University policies, completes benefit election forms, is given a job description and staff handbook, and is afforded the opportunity to participate in a question and answer session regarding policies and benefits. A list of attendees will be forwarded to the Loss Control Officer for completion of safety training and to the AA/EEO Officer for completion of harassment training. Copies of all benefit forms will be forwarded to the Payroll Office.
Approved By: Policy Committee
Date: July 16, 200