Employment

Compensation

Employee Relations

Employment

1) What is the procedure for hiring a new employee?

UPPS 04.04.03, "Staff Employment" provides the procedures for hiring new employees. Please review the attached UPPS:
http://www.txstate.edu/effective/upps/upps-04-04-03.html

2) What do I do after I have decided on my selected applicant and prior to offering the position? 

Approval from the Office of Equity and Access and completion of the criminal history background investigation is required before an offer of employment is extended and the appointing PCR can be processed by the hiring department. Once approval has been granted by Equity & Access, the background check results are obtained and the hiring manager has been notified by a Human Resources representative, the selected applicant can be notified.  If the offer is accepted, the hiring department will submit a PCR to place the individual on the payroll. The PCR cannot be processed until Human Resources receives the I-9 and the new hire documentation is completed at New Employee Orientation. The PCR should be submitted as soon as possible after the hiring process is completed and must be approved through proper administrative channels before the selected applicant reports to work. If the selected individual is new to Texas State University-San Marcos or is beginning their first monthly staff position (hourly to salary payroll), the account manager should send the individual to New Employee Orientation (NEO) in accordance with the provisions of UPPS No. 04.04.15. If the applicant was selected for a position that requires operating a University vehicle, please refer to UPPS 04.04.03, Sec. 06 to request the driving record check. 

  
3) When do new employees start?
 
Regular staff employees should begin employment on the first work day of the week.   During years when September 1 is not the first work day of the week, September 1 will be an acceptable start date.  Human Resources will adjust the NEO Part I accordingly. If the first day of the week is a holiday, employment starts on the following work day. Special approval (in written format) from the division vice president must be received in Human Resources prior to allowing a new employee to begin employment on a day other than the first work day of the week (out-of-cycle). The new employee will then attend the next scheduled NEO session.

4) How do I fill out the electronic applicant log? 

The applicant log must be filled out with the reason for selection and non-selection for each applicant including those interviewed but not selected. The applications must be compared against the stated job related criteria listed in the job posting.
In addition, the reason for non-selected but interviewed employees must be given based on the posted job-related criteria as well.
In addition to completing the log information, the account manager must complete the two electronic employment verification forms, located under the Employment Verification tab in EASY.

5) How do I fill out the employment matrix?

The hiring manager will complete a selection matrix indicating which knowledge, skills and abilities each applicant will need in order to be considered for the job. This selection matrix may only contain the knowledge, skills and abilities taken from the approved Guidelines Oriented Job Analysis (GOJA) for the position and listed in the job posting. The selection matrix is designed to provide a basis for equal analysis and treatment of each applicant during the initial screening phase of the review process. It is to be used to objectively compare an applicant’s qualifications to the job advertisement. All selection criteria must be job related, and all applicants and applications must be compared to these criteria. Hiring managers have the option of using the matrix provided on the HR website or a similar matrix of their own design.

6) How are applicants notified that they were not selected?

All applicants who fail to meet the minimum qualifications for the position for which they applied will be notified immediately via the PeopleAdmin application system. The hiring department is responsible for notifying all non-selected interviewed candidates.  Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications for the position but who are not interviewed may refer to the PeopleAdmin application system for updates on the status of their application.

7) What do I need to do when someone wants to resign and I need to post the position?  

A terminating PCR from the employee’s department is needed if the employee is leaving Texas State. If the employee is simply changing positions and/or changing departments within the university, the “receiving” department will complete the PCR.  
Once notified of an absolute termination date, the account manager needs to prepare the PCR form to remove the person from payroll and prepare a Position Requisition via the PeopleAdmin employment system in order to post the vacancy. 
Once the hiring manager completes the necessary information on the requisition it is routed through administrative channels for signature.  The requisition is then routed to Human Resources for posting for recruitment.  A Human Resources representative will notify the hiring manager when they are in receipt of the requisition and at that point monthly salary, the posting period, any questions/revisions regarding the job posting will be determined. The hiring manager will also need to develop the minimum qualifications, KSAs, the hiring matrix, and any supplemental questions to be asked via the PeopleAdmin system.
The supplemental questions must be open ended and applicants cannot be excluded from consideration for failure to answer the supplemental questions. The supplemental questions must link back to the knowledge, skills and abilities in the GOJA for the posted position.

8) How do I promote a student or temporary employee into a regular position?

Students and temporary employees must compete for any posted vacancy. They will need to follow standard application procedures and apply for the position once it has been opened for recruitment via the PeopleAdmin employment system.

9) How long does a position need to be opened?

UPPS 04.04.03, Staff Employment requires that all staff positions be posted for a minimum of 10 working days. A significant business need must be provided in order to post for fewer than 10 working days. Such a need must be reviewed and approved by the Office of Equity and Access prior to posting.
A significant business need has been established and approved for the following positions which permit them to be posted for only 5 working days: Administrative Assistant I and II, Custodian, Grounds Maintenance Worker I and II, Grant Clerk, Grant Secretary, Utility Maintenance Worker I and II and Guard positions may be posted for only 5 working days.  

1) When will my audit be completed? 

Typically, an audit is completed  2 to 3 work weeks after Human Resources receives the required documentation.  The documents required for a job audit are an approved requisition via the PeopleAdmin system, justification statement, departmental organization chart ,  and a completed  GOJA.  If any of this information is not included there may be a delay in completing the audit review.  The actual audit review does not begin until after all of the required information is received by Human Resources.   Based upon the nature of the audit, an on-site meeting may be required with the employee, supervisor or other relevant party. The justification statement is needed to help explain the position and how it fits into the organization, what duties may have changed, and other summary information about the position. This documentation is required per the UPPS 04.04.11 "Staff Classification and Compensation Policy."

2) What documents need to be submitted with the audit request? 

An approved requisition, justification statement, organizational chart, and completed GOJA are documents required for an audit review.

3) What is a justification statement and why is it necessary?

The justification statement is needed to help explain the position and how it fits into the organization, what duties may have changed, and other summary information about the position.

4) What is the job code? 

The job code is the numerical identification assigned to each job title in the University.

5) How do I find out my staff’s salary? 

Account managers may obtain their employee's employment history, including their salary(ies) via SAP through MSS or through PA20. 

6) How do I give my employee a raise, and what are the rules concerning promotions and reclassifications? 

Policy recommends that a 15% salary increase be granted with a reclassification or promotion. An employee must be paid at least the pay plan minimum of the new position/title. Also, previous rules requiring ULP restoration no longer apply.
Employees may be granted a raise at any time and for amount. An employee’s salary may not exceed the pay plan maximum for their job title. A PCR is approved through channels via SAP in order to complete the pay increase. More information is available at:
 http://www.txstate.edu/effective/upps/upps-04-04-11.html

7) What is the difference between non-exempt and exempt status?
  
Both terms are derived from the Federal legislation called the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  These terms are used to denote whether a position is subject to overtime compensation. Non-exempt positions are required to receive overtime compensation for work hours that exceed forty in a work week. Actual hours worked does not include paid leave hours. The overtime compensation rate is time and a half for all work hours over forty. Exempt positions are not subject to FLSA overtime compensation.  In the Texas State University Compensation Policy (UPPS 04.04.11) classified positions are non-exempt.  Unclassified positions are exempt.

Both exempt and non-exempt employees are eligible to receive State compensatory time when the number of hours actually worked and the number of hours of paid leave exceed 40 in a work week. State comp time is accrued on a straight time basis. Accrued comp time must be used within a year of earning it or it expires. In the university pay plan non-exempt positions are referred to as Classified and exempt positions are referred to as Unclassified.

Employee Relations: back to top

1) My employee keeps violating office policy ... Can I reprimand him/her?

Account managers have the authority to discipline their employees through verbal and written reprimands, suspensions without pay and may recommend termination to their administrative officer. Only persons who report to a vice president or the vice presidents, president, or provost themselves may terminate an employee.

The account manager has broad discretion in determining which disciplinary action to take. They are encouraged to take a progressive discipline approach which would involve first a verbal reprimand, then a written reprimand followed by a possible suspension and then ultimately possible termination if the work related behavior does not improve.

The amount of time given to an employee to resolve any performance issues is also up to the account manager. Typically, minor rules infractions can be resolved quickly. Account managers are encouraged to discuss any performance issues with Human Resources for guidance on these issues. Please contact HR at X2557 for more information.

2) How do I evaluate my employee(s)? 

Employees are evaluated annually according to the duties and responsibilities listed in the GOJA for the employee as represented in the Performance Appraisal document. Account managers must review their employee's GOJA(s) at least annually to ensure that the evaluation is conducted based on the GOJA information. The Performance Appraisal document must reflect the information in the GOJA. 

HR provides a seminar at least once every long semester on the Performance Appraisal process. Account managers and their employees are encouraged to attend these events to learn more about the appraisal process and how to conduct a positive appraisal of their employees. Additional information on the timing of the seminar can be found at the Professional Development link below:
http://www.txstate.edu/pdevelop/pd.htm

In addition, there have been several policy changes for calendar year 05 concerning how employees are appraised. Specifically, additional documentation is required if a supervisor rates an employee at any rate above or below a “3,” which is “meets standards.”  Also, each employee must be evaluated on whether or not they have followed work place rules and regulations. Additional information concerning these policy changes can be found at:  http://www.txstate.edu/effective/upps/upps-04-04-20.html