Staff Handbook

All University vacancies, including part-time and work-study positions, are posted on the University web site at: http://hr.uark.edu/employment/ and regular benefited classified positions are also described in a notebook in University of Arkansas Human Resources. A separate notebook in Human Resources contains descriptions of all vacant non-classified positions. Non-classified positions are also listed in the Office of Affirmative Action. The web site also lists selected off-campus part-time positions. Human Resources publishes a one-page Job Opportunities List which gives summary information about all classified and non-classified positions for which applications are currently being accepted. State minimum qualifications for most job titles may be found at the web site listed above.

The University has a standard application form for classified positions only. You may apply for classified positions in Human Resources. You will be given a brief screening interview to determine your qualifications and interests and you will be given the opportunity to take software skills tests if the positions you are interested in require competency in software use. When information on your application has changed, you should complete a new application to make certain it is up-to-date and accurate.

If you meet the minimum or preferred qualifications (depending on which the hiring department has specified) for a position you are interested in, your application will be sent to the department where the vacancy exists. If you wish to submit a resume with your application, you may do so and it will be transmitted along with your application and software skills test scores. The hiring department will be responsible for scheduling an interview or otherwise informing you about the status of your application once it leaves Human Resources.

Application procedures for non-classified positions are explained in the individual position announcements. There is not a standard University application form for these positions, and application is made directly to the department in which the vacancy exists. Information about where to send your application materials and about the information or documents required for application is usually contained in the position announcement. Human Resources does not accept applications for non-classified positions, but does have information about currently open positions.

If you are currently a University employee, you may apply for any vacant position by following the procedures outlined above. See also Section 4.5, Promotions.

All regular, benefited University positions must be listed with University of Arkansas Human Resources if they are classified and listed with the Office of Affirmative Action if they are non-classified. Human Resources places general advertisements for classified University positions in local job-listing publications, and lists current vacancies on the University web site (http://hr.uark.edu/employment/), and on the printed listing described above, but departments may also run advertisements approved by Human Resources for specific classified positions or groups of positions. All non-classified positions must be advertised in the appropriate recruitment sources, in accordance with the University's affirmative action plan. Current employees are encouraged to inquire about promotion and transfer opportunities through Human Resources.

Selection for positions is carried out by the departments in which the vacancies exist and is made on the basis of job-related qualifications and experience and in a manner consistent with the University's Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity policies described in Section 3.5 of this handbook.

(Arkansas Code Ann. §21-5-1001-1003; Acts 100 and 101 of 1985; Act 899 of 1997; Act 22 of 2003; Act 449 of 2007, AHRMS Policy Manual, OPM Form 026)

Performance evaluation is a process that should take place continuously. While day-to-day evaluation is usually informal, Arkansas law requires that the performance of all classified employees be evaluated formally at least once a year, in accordance with the Arkansas Performance Evaluation Plan.

Non-classified staff must be evaluated annually by their immediate supervisors, using forms and procedures appropriate to their positions and responsibilities.  Supervisors must discuss non-classified evaluations with the employees being evaluated and give them copies of their evaluations.

The performance evaluation is the basis for any salary increase.  Employees who receive a written performance-based or disciplinary reprimand during the twelve-month rating period covered by their evaluation are not eligible for a merit increase.

The Arkansas Performance Evaluation Plan

The Arkansas Performance Evaluation Plan is a standards-based system. Performance standards describe how a job is to be performed and are developed to represent fully satisfactory job performance. Your supervisor may ask for your assistance in developing your job standards, and should review your standards with you at least annually, in addition to revising them each time your job duties change. Your supervisor is responsible for establishing and up-dating your performance standards and has the authority to determine the standards for your job.

The Office of Personnel Management has established guidelines for the administration of the Arkansas Performance Evaluation Plan. The University provides additional guidelines. The guidelines include the following requirements:

1. Annual evaluations must be completed at least 30 days prior to a classified employee's merit eligibility date, usingthe approved performance evaluation form. Classified employees appointed October 1, 2006, or earlier have an October 1 merit eligibility data.  Classified employees appointed after October 1, 2006, have a merit eligibility date one year after their appointment date.  If interim evaluations are done, the interim evaluations must be considered in the annual evaluation.
    
2. Standards for the rating period must be set by the supervisor, and where possible with the input of the employee, at the beginning of each rating cycle or not later than 30 days after the start of new duties.
    
3. The standards must be developed from a list of critical job tasks and stated in terms of observable behavior.
    
4. The standards must be communicated clearly to and understood by the employee.
    
5. The completed standards must be reviewed by the next highest official to the rating supervisor.
    
6. A written copy of the standards must be given to the employee.
    
7. If a rating supervisor is transferred to another unit or terminates employment, he or she must complete performance evaluations for those employees whose most recent evaluation was completed more than 90 calendar days prior to the supervisor's termination date.
    
8. If, at any time during the evaluation period, the supervisor determines that an employee's performance has fallen below an acceptable standard, the supervisor must document the below-acceptable performance and counsel the employee.
    
9. If an employee's general performance falls below the acceptable standard, the employee must be placed on probation and counseled.
    
10. The completed performance evaluation must be reviewed and approved by the next highest official to the rating supervisor.
     
11. Employees must be allowed to make a formal request for reconsideration of their performance evaluation. (See the Appeals Procedure section, below.)

Your Performance Rating

Your formal performance evaluation will be made on the basis of your performance over the preceding twelve months. Your supervisor will compile the observations of your performance during that period and will rate your actual performance in comparison to the expected performance standards. The rating uses four performance categories: unsatisfactory, satisfactory, above average, and exceeds standards. Your supervisor will review and explain your ratings in a performance evaluation conference. You may use the conference as a time to discuss your performance achievements as well as problems you may have encountered during the rating period. Be prepared to make suggestions about ways you might correct or improve your performance.

At the end of the performance evaluation conference, your supervisor will ask you to make written comments about your evaluation in the place provided on the evaluation form. You may use this opportunity to state your agreement or disagreement with the evaluation and the reasons for your response. You will then be asked to sign the form. Your signature does not mean that you accept or agree with the rating, only that your supervisor has discussed it with you. After your evaluation and your comments have been reviewed by the next highest official, your supervisor will give you a copy of the evaluation for your files.

Establishing New Performance Standards

Your performance evaluation marks the end of a rating cycle. Within a few days, you can expect your supervisor to either reaffirm or rewrite your performance standards for the next rating period, which will begin a new performance evaluation cycle. Your supervisor may ask for your assistance in establishing your standards. To prepare for that process, you may wish to take the following steps:

1. Think through what you are supposed to do in your job. If you have a position description, you may want to refer to it. List the tasks that are important to your position. List only those tasks that you are currently required to do, not those that you may have done in the past.
    
2. Discuss your list of tasks with your supervisor and compare it with the list your supervisor may have compiled. Discuss the job. This is also a good time to discuss problems you encounter frequently and to make suggestions about how those problems might be solved.
    
3. Once you and your supervisor have developed your performance standards, they will be reviewed by your supervisor's supervisor and you will receive a copy for your files. Keep your standards in mind during the year and make notes about any performance problems and accomplishments Your notes can be used at your next performance evaluation conference to help you and your supervisor discuss your performance during that rating period.

Appeals Procedure

1. Ask your supervisor to reconsider your evaluation. Your request for reconsideration must be made in writing* within ten calendar days of the evaluation interview, and must state the reasons you think the rating is inaccurate, providing evidence or documentation, as appropriate.
    
2. Your supervisor will review your reasons for disagreeing with your rating and respond to you in writing within ten calendar days of receiving your request.
    
3. If you and your supervisor cannot reach agreement, you may submit a written request for review, within five calendar days, to your supervisor's immediate supervisor.
    
4. That official will review your request for reconsideration and your supervisor's response, and may ask either or both of you to provide additional documentation or explanation. Within ten calendar days of receiving your request for review, your supervisor's immediate supervisor will respond to you and your supervisor in writing, proposing a resolution of the disagreement.

5. If the unit in which you work has additional levels of supervision, and you are not satisfied with the proposed resolution, you may appeal the decision of your supervisor’s supervisor to the next level and beyond, provided that you present evidence or documentation supporting your request for review, up to the level of the head of your unit. At each level, you must submit your request for review within five calendar days after receiving a response and the reviewer will have ten calendar days to respond.
    
6. If you disagree with the recommendations of the head of your unit, you may submit a written request for review, presenting supporting evidence, 0within five calendar days, to your vice chancellor. The vice chancellor will review the written record and may ask for specific additional information or documentation. Within ten calendar days of receiving your request for review, your vice chancellor will recommend a resolution, in writing, to you and your supervisor.
    
7. If you are not satisfied with the recommendation of your vice chancellor, you may submit a request for review, along with documentation, to Human Resources, which will forward it, within five calendar days, to the chair of the Performance Evaluation Review Committee. The Performance Evaluation Review Committee will meet within ten calendar days to review all pertinent documentation concerning your disagreement with your supervisor's performance rating, and, within ten calendar days of its meeting, will make a recommendation in writing to the Chancellor. The decision of the Chancellor is final and binding.

Performance-Based Probation

If, at any time during the evaluation period, your supervisor determines that your performance has, in general, fallen below the standards for your position (so that your overall performance is unsatisfactory), you may be placed on probation. Your supervisor must document the below-acceptable performance, inform you that you have been placed on probation, and counsel you about ways you can improve. The length of your probation for unacceptable performance is to be not less than 30 nor more than 60 days. During the probationary period, your supervisor will counsel you about your progress or lack of progress.

At the end of the probationary period, your supervisor will conduct a formal evaluation. If you have met the standards of performance (completely satisfactory), your supervisor will remove you from probationary status. If you fail to meet the standards for your position, your supervisor may extend the probationary period and give you additional counseling or may terminate your employment. If your performance drops below satisfactory during an evaluation year and you improve before the time of your annual evaluation, the unsatisfactory evaluation will not go into your employee file. If your annual evaluation score is unsatisfactory, that evaluation will become part of your permanent file.

Benefits of Performance Evaluation

The performance evaluation plan is designed to help you understand what is expected of you in your job, give you information about what you need to do to improve your performance, determine your eligibility for salary increases, and help develop your career opportunities. You will begin each evaluation cycle with a written copy of your performance standards. The standards should tell you exactly what you have to do and how well you must do it to receive a fully satisfactory performance rating. This advance notice will help you, throughout the rating period, to meet your supervisor's expectations.

You and your supervisor should talk with each other, throughout the rating period, about your performance, so there will be no surprises in the evaluation conference. The communication process that performance evaluation requires provides an opportunity for you and your supervisor to work out misunderstandings and disagreements as they occur and before they become more serious. The review of your standards and of your evaluation by your supervisor's supervisor will help to ensure that your performance is being rated fairly and objectively and that your performance standards are comparable to those for other employees in your unit.

(Act 1061 of 1999; AHRMS Policy Manual, 230)

The Office of Personnel Management of the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration has been authorized to develop a career ladder incentive program for employees of state agencies, boards, commissions, and institutions of higher education. A career ladder incentive program is a competency-based pay system which incorporates pay and performance standards and which establishes criteria for competency-based promotions and salary adjustments. If such a system is funded by the State, the University will participate, and Human Resources will coordinate campus planning for its implementation. If you have questions about the career ladder incentive program, call the classification and compensation area of Human Resources at 575-6209.

(AHRMS Policy Manual 220-7, 11 and 12)

If you are a classified staff employee, there are three methods by which you may be promoted:

1. You may be promoted, by your department head, to another position in your department or unit which is classified at a higher grade, if you meet the state minimum qualifications for that position. This is called an internal promotion. The position that is left vacant by your promotion will be advertised, except when it has been filled internally, left vacant by the department, or eliminated.
    
2. Your position may be reclassified if your responsibilities have changed significantly. If the new classification is at a higher grade, the reclassification of your position will mean a promotion for you.
    
3. You may apply for a position in another area of the University which is classified at a higher grade or for a non-classified position. If you meet the state minimum qualifications and are selected for the position, your transfer to that position will also be a promotion for you.

Your new rate of pay will be at least Pay Level I for your new grade, and cannot exceed Pay Level IV of your new grade. If your new classification is one grade higher than your former classification, your pay will increase by 6%. If your new classification is two or more grades higher than your previous one, your pay will increase by 8%. If your promotion results from the reclassification of your current job or a class upgrade, your increase will be 6% or Pay Level I of the new classification, whichever is higher. If your new job is non-classified, your pay will be determined by the department's budget, pay rates for similar positions, and your own experience, skills, and education, within the constraints of the legislative line item maximum pay for that position. See also Section 6.3.

(AHRMS Policy Manual 220-8, 9, 11 and 13) If you are a classified staff member, there are three methods by which you can be demoted:

1. You may be demoted, by your department head, to another position in your department or unit which is classified at a lower grade. This is called an internal demotion. The position that is left vacant by your demotion will be advertised, except when it has been filled internally, left vacant by the department, or eliminated.
    
2. Your position may be reclassified if your responsibilities have changed significantly. If the new reclassification is at a lower grade, the reclassification of your position will mean a demotion for you.
    
3. You may apply for a position in another area of the University which is classified at a lower grade. If you are selected for the position, your transfer to that position will also be a demotion for you.

Your new rate of pay cannot exceed Pay Level IV of your new grade. If your new classification is one grade lower than your former classification, your pay will decrease by 6%. If your new classification is two or more grades lower than your previous one, your pay will decrease by 8%. However, if your demotion results from the reclassification of your current job or a legislative class downgrade, your pay will not be affected. If you are demoted because your original position has been eliminated, you may continue to receive the same rate of pay, with the approval of the Office of Personnel Management and review by the Arkansas Legislative Council. See also Section 6.4.

(Governor's Policy Directive #8; AHRMS Policy Manual 200-1.11, 220-6)

If you are a classified employee, you may transfer to another position classified at the same grade in your department or unit, or to a position classified at the same grade in another department or unit; this would be a lateral change. You may also transfer to another state agency or institution. If you transfer to another agency or institution without a break in service or within two pay periods, you will be considered to have transferred and will retain certain benefits. See also Section 6.3.

Note that, under OPM definitions, two pay periods consist of twenty consecutive working days for state agencies and institutions of higher education.

1. If you transfer to another position classified at the same grade, in your department or unit, in another department or unit of the University, or in another state agency or institution, your pay will remain the same.
    
2. If you transfer to a position at a higher or lower grade in another state agency or institution, the effect on your pay will be the same as if you had been promoted or demoted.
    
3. If you transfer from a non-classified position to a classified position, your new pay will be at a rate within the new classification which does not exceed your previous pay rate or the maximum authorized for the new position. If your previous pay rate was below Level I for the classified position, your classified pay rate will be at Level I. If you transfer to a non-classified position, your pay will be determined by the department's budget, pay rates for similar positions, and your own experience, skills, and education, within the constraints of the legislative line item maximum pay for that position.
    
4. If you have left your previous position and transfer to a new one within two pay periods (twenty consecutive working days), you will have all of your unused sick leave reinstated. If you have received a lump sum payment for unused vacation days upon leaving your previous position, you must either wait until the number of days you were paid for have elapsed before beginning your new position or reimburse the agency or institution which awarded you the lump sum vacation pay for any time which has not elapsed since you left your previous position. If you reimburse the agency, your annual leave time will be reinstated.

(AHRMS Policy Manual 220-4, 5)

If you leave the University and are rehired by any department in the University or by another state agency or institution after two pay periods (twenty consecutive working days), you will be considered a rehire. If you have left another state agency or institution and are hired by the University after two pay periods (twenty consecutive working days) you will also be considered a rehire.

(Act 1474 of 1999; AHRMS Policy Manual, 180)

With your written permission, a prospective employer who requests it may be given the following information about you as a current or former employee: (a) date and duration of your employment; (b) your current pay rate and wage history; (c) your job description and duties; (e) attendance information; (f) the results of drug or alcohol tests administered within one year of the request; (g) threats of violence, harassing acts, or threatening behavior related to your workplace or directed at another employee; (h) whether you were voluntarily or involuntarily separated from employment and the reasons for the separation; and (i) whether you are eligible for rehire.

You must sign and date the consent form and it will be valid only for the length of time that you are considered an active applicant by the prospective employer, but for no longer than six months.

The University or any other state agency which discloses this information about you will be presumed, under Act 1474 of 1999, to be acting in good faith and will be immune from civil liability unless it can be shown that the information disclosed was false and that the University or other state agency had knowledge of its falsity or acted with malice or reckless disregard for the truth.

SCHEDULING POLICIES