06:91:00 Promotion of Non-Faculty Employees

Promotion of Non-Faculty Employees

06:91:00 Promotion of Non-Faculty Employees

1. Purpose
   1. The purpose of the policy is to establish a procedure for promotions and transfers of non-faculty employees (regular full and part-time employees) within a department (supervisor’s functional area according to the College’s organizational chart).
   2. The promotion of employees is intended to provide career mobility and professional growth opportunities. Chattanooga State seeks and supports promotions from within as a means of rewarding outstanding performance.
   3. Note: Nothing in this policy precludes the supervisor from advertising positions externally/internally or prevents an employee from submitting an application during the search process.
2. General
   1. TBR policy defines a promotion as being “an increase in position or rank brought about by means of assuming the duties of a vacant position of higher classification, or assuming duties which warrant a reclassification of present position to one at a higher level.” A lateral transfer is defined as “the assumption of duties of another position at the same level.”
   2. TBR policy further states that “promotions of personnel other than faculty should be made pursuant to established and written criteria developed by the institution or center. Promotions and transfers are an acceptable means of filling vacancies; however, such promotions and transfers must be achieved within the parameters of institutional affirmative action plans, Geier objectives, and TBR Policies.” (TBR Policy 5:01:00:00 and Guideline P-010).
   3. Chattanooga State considers a promotion to be when a current employee is assigned to a vacant or new position at a higher skill level or pay grade without the position being advertised or when a regular part-time position has been approved as a full-time position and retains its same job description and skill level/pay grade.
   4. When a department has a vacant or new budgeted position, it may recommend a nonprobationary status employee within the department at a lower skill level or pay grade to fill that vacant position or initiate a lateral transfer of an employee within the department.
   5. The employee must meet the minimum qualifications of the position when moving into a vacant or new position.
   6. When a departmental transfer or promotion is not recommended or approved (i.e., a department does not have anyone to promote or transfer) and it is felt that there are qualified internal candidates, the department may recommend that the position be advertised internally. The decision to advertise internally should be made in consultation with Human Resources and the Affirmative Action Office. Internal posting will require that a “Request to Fill Existing Position” action be performed in the PeopleAdmin system and submitted through the normal electronic signature routing.
   7. The position(s) will be posted internally for five working days. After a review of the internal applicant pool, the hiring supervisor may recommend a current, regular full or part-time employee for the vacancy or may recommend that the search continue externally.
   8. Note: This policy does not apply to temporary employees. Temporary employees have not gone through a previous search process and are not regular full or part-time employees.
   9. A promotion is not a reclassification. A reclassification occurs when the duties of a job change significantly over time, thus, warranting a job audit. When a job audit is conducted and based on the current duties performed, a position may be upgraded to a higher skill level/pay grade within the CSTCC pay plan or may be downgraded to a lower skill level/pay grade within the CSTCC pay plan. Note: Reclassifications are generally approved during normal budget cycles (October with the changes effective in January of the following year and April with the changes effective in July of the same year).
   10. Positions requiring Board approval as outlined in TBR Policy 5:01:00:00 and TBR Guideline P-010 are not covered by this procedure. However, these particular positions do at times follow the reclassification process
3. Process
   1. If a promotion or transfer is recommended, the Supervisor will initiate a promotion/transfer proposal document which will include a written memorandum outlining the specific reasons for the proposed promotion or transfer and explaining how this promotion/transfer will help the campus relative to Affirmative Action and Geier objectives, a recent employment application and resume from the recommended employee, and the latest performance evaluation of the employee; these materials should be attached to a completed Personnel Action Form and submitted for approval to the appropriate Vice President, the EEO/Affirmative Action Officer, the Director of Human Resources, the Vice President for Business & Finance, and the President.
   2. The EEO/Affirmative Action Officer will review the request for promotion/transfer based on affirmative action goals.
   3. The Director of Human Resources or designee will review the request for promotion/transfer based on the position’s minimum requirements. After it is determined that the employee meets the requirements for the promotion or transfer, Human Resources will recommend a salary based on the employee’s years of relevant/related work experience and education in accordance with the CSTCC salary plan.
   4. The Personnel Action Form with the salary recommendation and attachments will be sent back to the Vice President for review and approval and then forwarded to the Vice President for Business and Finance for budget approval and returned to Human Resources. Human Resources will sign the Personnel Action Form and forward it to the President for final approval.
   5. Once the President has approved the recommendation, the Human Resources department will send the applicant a promotion letter and a new contract. As with any new hire or reclassification an employee who is promoted or transferred will be subjected to the initial probationary period outlined in their new contract.

Approved: Executive Staff, 05/20/09
Approved: President’s Cabinet, 05/20/09
Approved: President, 05/20/09
Reviewed and Revised by: Human Resources/ November 2008