Guidelines for temporary positions help protect
staff
For several years, Human Resources has monitored temporary staffing within the University. Some issues of concern regarding temporaries
continue to occur including policy, financial, and ethical matters. This article will clarify the issues and
recommend procedures for hiring and utilizing temporary staff in the future.
Policies and definitions
Business Office Memorandum No. 66 (
One who is employed for a limited period during
the year, or whose employment is intermittent, irregular, casual or seasonal,
and which may be either full time or part time during the period employed. All student employees shall be considered as
“Temporary Employees.”
Business Office Memorandum No. 154 (
50.0% or more of a normal
workweek for a 12-month period,
54.6% or more of a
normal workweek for an 11-month period,
60.0% or more of a
normal workweek for a 10-month period,
66.7%
or more of a normal workweek for a 9-month period.”
The policy continues, “Those employees whose
work schedules do not meet the criteria established for Regular will be
classified as Temporary.” Finally, the
policy states, “Regular clerical and service staff members shall be eligible
for staff benefits…”
These policies, in concert, suggest that any
employee working more than half time of a normal 40-hour workweek (1,040 hours
per year) or the equivalent on an ongoing basis should be classified as regular
and earn University benefits.
Ethical concerns
Oftentimes, in an effort to control the budget,
managers decide to cut positions or create temporary positions to minimize
labor costs. In some instances, where
staffing is kept artificially low, temporary staffing has increased. This leads to the danger that the department
is violating University policy and “taking advantage” of individuals by not
granting them the benefits for which they qualify.
Benefits may include more than medical coverage
and paid time off. Attendance at
training programs and an opportunity for promotions may also be at stake. Many long-term temporary staff have no resume on file with Human Resource Services, which
may indicate that they have no understanding of how to improve their
situation. In some instances, employees
have been discovered working as “temporaries” for several years while meeting
the criteria for regular employment.
One interesting characteristic of the current
pool of temporary staff is that several of those who are working a high number
of hours annually are retirees. While
casual consideration might assume those employees want to make some pocket
money and have an opportunity to maintain social connections, discussion with
supervisors who are willing to be candid seem to indicate that the real reason
many retirees continue to work is to help pay for the high cost of medical
coverage.
Human Resource Services recently requested legal
counsel specifically on the issue of treating retirees differently than other
temporaries. The recommendation was that
all temporaries should be dealt with the same; otherwise, Purdue could be in
jeopardy for “disparate treatment,” or discrimination against a protected
class.
Financial issues
Purdue as a whole employs many student temporary
workers. This relationship is a
“win-win” situation for the University as well as the students. The campus utilizes a relatively inexpensive
source of labor, and the students gain valuable work experience and financial
support for college expenses.
This favorable relationship does not translate
as well to non-student temporary employees. Most non-student applicants are interested in
a long-term employment relationship.
Applicants often accept a temporary assignment hoping to get a foot in
the door and don’t understand Purdue’s responsibility to affirmative action and
equal employment opportunity laws. In
some cases, they become “attached” to a particular department and refuse to
consider regular openings in other departments.
In other instances, upon being laid off from a long-term assignment,
they file for and receive unemployment compensation.
Security issues
We do not currently require that temporary staff
be screened through Human Resources as applicants for regular employment
are. This is not a problem per se, but
can be a concern if supervisors fail to thoroughly interview and investigate
the background of potential temporary employees. Unfortunately, minimal review happens quite
frequently due to the managers’ busy schedules or the tight labor market. This may lead to hiring any warm body that
shows up interested in working.
Based on the nature of the work, certain
positions are designated to undergo a criminal conviction records check--except
for temporary staff. This is a serious
breach of responsibility toward the safety of our faculty, staff, and students,
as well as the public. In some
instances, temporary staff have worked for a
significant period, but were let go later when it was discovered that they had
felony convictions for crimes such as theft, battery, child molestation, or
dealing drugs.
Recommendations
To address these concerns, we suggest that
hiring supervisors consider the following in order to make good decisions about
staffing:
First, determine whether the need for staff is
based on a short-term or irregular need or whether there is justification for
creating a regular position.
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There are primarily two types of temporary
work assignments. If temporary assignments
are expected to continue indefinitely, managers must not schedule staff for
more than 1,000 hours per year. Audits
will be conducted to monitor this limitation. |
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In the case of temporary assignments to cover
for vacancies, special projects, seasonal workloads, or illness, assignments
normally should not last more than one semester. Longer assignments should only occur with Human
Resources authorization. |
Then, at a minimum, all non-student temporary
staff should submit a resume and be screened by Human Resource Services. In summary, these steps will help assure that
temporary staff are aware of opportunities and are properly rewarded for their
efforts. It will also make certain that
Purdue is not taking advantage of employees.
- Sue Gibson
Human Resource Specialist
Housing and Food Services Human Resource Service Team