Classified Employees Approval and
Recruitment Procedures
I. Position Approval
Prior to the initiation of recruitment procedures, approval for new positions must be
obtained from the President through the appropriate administrative channels (department
chairperson/director; provost/vice president). Replacement positions will normally be
approved by the area vice president. Full documentation must accompany the request, as
follows:
A. Position title (must be in accordance with already existing job
descriptions/specifications)
B. Source of funding
C. Beginning total yearly wage, based on starting rate per hour for the particular
position
D. Minimum qualifications required
E. Justification for filling the position
II. Hiring
It is important to remember that we are recruiting as well as screening and that our
advance planning, fairness, enthusiasm, and courtesy are all important elements in hiring
the people who best match UMF's needs. We must scrupulously honor the candidates' rights
to confidentiality, not divulging their names to anyone. The unit director, the
Director of Human Resources, the vice president for that area, and the President have access to the
candidate pool; otherwise, access to the application files is limited to members of the
search committee. We must also be careful not to ask questions that might be considered
discriminatory. (See Pre-employment Inquiry Guide.) All questions regarding salary or
terms of employment should be referred to the search committee chair so that a consistent
official response may be given.
The search committee should use criteria for screening consistent with the information
provided in the position request and approval, and these should not change during the
process. Any change in criteria will constitute a new position and will necessitate a new
search.
We need to run inclusive searches that generate broad and diverse applicant pools so
that we can select the candidate who will best contribute to our overall mission of
educating students. In addition to doing the work in the job description, all employees
are part of the UMF community and need to work with other employees and students to make
UMF successful. A diverse workforce enriches our educational environment.
A. Temporary Positions
If the position is temporary, upon approval by the President, the unit director, upon
consultation with the Director of Human Resources, may proceed to fill it in the most
expedient manner, depending upon the needs of the department/office and in compliance with
any existing collective bargaining agreement.
B. Regular Positions
Regular positions are sometimes filled by on-campus applicants and sometimes by
applicants outside the campus. In either case, we are committed to open and inclusive
searches in which people are encouraged to apply and are treated fairly at every step of
the search process.
1. On-campus process
If the position is regular, the unit director will contact the
Director of Human Resources to
obtain the Classified Position Announcement form. (The position announcement
which is developed at this point must not be altered even if the job goes off campus.) The
Director of Human Resources will announce the position's availability to all current classified
employees, utilizing that form and complying with existing collective bargaining
agreements and affirmative action guidelines. Interested employees will be considered for
transfer or promotion and qualified candidates will be granted an interview prior to any
other prospective candidates. Prior to making any offer of
employment, references should be contacted, including the employee's
current supervisor. Voting members of search committees must not
write references for candidates. The Director of Human Resources will also send the
vacancy notice to all University of Maine System EEO directors.
2. Off-campus process
If it is necessary to fill the position from outside the campus, a search group will be
formed consisting of at least four people---at least three chosen by the unit director and
approved by the area vice president - as well as the Affirmative Action Observer selected
by the Equal Employment Director. The AA Observer reads the applications and helps the committee honor equal employment and affirmative action guidelines, but he or she does NOT vote.Minorities and women should be included in the search process
to the extent possible. While this minimum requirement must be met in all classified
searches, a committee of around five members will be most effective in many classified
searches. In these searches, consideration should be given to asking a student and/or a
person outside the hiring unit to serve, as appropriate.
a. The search chair should contact the chair of the Affirmative Action Committee so
that an Affirmative Action Observer can be selected to participate in the search process.
The Observer serves in an advisory capacity and does not vote during the selection
process; however, in job groups with affirmative action goals he or she determines at
several points whether the search is going forth according to affirmative action
guidelines. The Observer should be contacted for a detailed explanation of AA/EEO
guidelines and advice regarding sources of recruitment and should be invited to all
meetings of the search committee or search group. (The AA/EEO Director can also be
consulted for additional help at any time.) In job groups with AA goals, the search chair
should submit Part I of the Affirmative Action Report, accompanied by Part I of the
Affirmative Action Observer's Report, at the beginning of the search.
b. The unit director will advertise all positions in newspapers in the recruitment
area, in accordance with affirmative action guidelines, with the goal of obtaining a
sufficient pool of applicants. All ads should be consistent with the on-campus
posting and should be developed in consultation with the Affirmative Action Observer. Only
applications received for the specific position advertised will be considered in the
search. In job groups with AA goals, prior to the beginning of the screening process, the
search chair will submit Part II of the Affirmative Action Report, accompanied by Part II
of the Affirmative Action Observer's Report
c. The department/office concerned will screen applications and arrange interviews
(normally a minimum of three). In job groups with AA goals, prior to the on-campus
interviews, the search chair will submit Part III of the Affirmative Action Report,
accompanied by Part III of the Affirmative Action Observer's Report. Before the
interviews, the search committee should agree upon a consistent set of questions for the
position being hired and should be sure to ask them of every candidate. During
the interviews, all applicants should be provided with information concerning the hourly
rate of pay, fringe benefits, and the collective bargaining status of the position.
d. Prior to making any offer of employment, references should be contacted. Voting
members of search committees must not write references for candidates. (Exceptions to this
policy need to be approved in advance by the Affirmative Action Director.) In job groups
with AA goals, the search chair should submit Part IV of the Affirmative Action Report,
accompanied by Part IV of the Affirmative Action Observer's Report.
3. The following documentation should be kept:
a. List of all candidates who submitted applications.
b. Brief checklist of why people were eliminated (e.g., does not have required
qualifications, pertinent experience considerably less than other candidates). All reasons
that candidates were eliminated need to be clearly job related and traceable to the
required and preferred qualifications for the job. Note: All telephone
interview notes from individual search committee members must be kept.
c. List of candidates interviewed on campus and reason for ranking.
Note: All notes from individual search committee members made while
interviewing candidates on campus must be kept.
4. Following consultation with the unit director and the area vice president, the
search chair may make an oral offer of employment to a candidate, to be confirmed in
writing. Upon acceptance of the offer by the candidate, the Director of
Human Resources should
be notified so that detailed information concerning wage level and fringe benefits can be
given to the new employee.
5. The search chair will notify all unsuccessful candidates as soon as
possible after a hire has been made. A phone call directly to the unsuccessful
candidate or a letter to her or him is acceptable; however, e-mail and phone messages
should not be used.
6. At the conclusion of the search, applications of all candidates and the
correspondence to them should be sent to the Director of Human Resources, who will retain them
for three years for equal employment purposes only.
12/19/00 cls p&p 1200
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