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Guidelines

Staff Secondment

April 2009

The university endorses and is committed to the concept of continuous learning and development for all staff members. Secondments provide staff with opportunities for personal, professional and career development, and a mechanism for getting on-the-job experience in different areas of campus, thus increasing their overall knowledge and effectiveness to the organization. To that end, managers are strongly encouraged to consider the use of secondments for special projects or assignments or to fill positions where staff are expected to return from leaves of absence.

Normally, secondments must be advertised internally to the campus community and Human Resources will record and batch resumes before forwarding on to the hiring manager. In some cases, it may be appropriate that secondments not be advertised due to unique needs, required skills or special circumstances. The seconding department head with the agreement of the home department head must formally request a waiver from advertisement from the Staff Relations Committee.

All secondment arrangements must be formally documented* and signatures obtained from the home department head, the seconding department head and the staff member. A copy of the secondment agreement must be sent to Human Resources for the staff member’s file. 

Managers involved in a secondment arrangement can consult Human Resources for information on advertising a secondment and drafting an agreement.

It is understood that short term needs within a unit often can be met by re-assignment of existing regular or temporary staff. Recognizing that “short-term” is subject to interpretation, it is suggested that departmental reassignments of up to twelve months are not “secondments” (see short-term stipends for staff).  However, staff movement between business units should generally be considered as secondments regardless of duration.

Classification and Performance Appraisals (Including Consultation and Approval Process)

A staff member who is seconded to a position at a higher classification level than her/his normal position, may be temporarily reclassified for the duration of the secondment to that higher grade level or one appropriate to the work being performed. (Note: A reclassification is not always necessary.)  Depending on the percentage of time worked in the seconded position, reclassifications will be considered and determined by the Human Resources Department and the appropriate department head of the seconded position, with or without consulting the home department head, as follows:

Performance Appraisals
Where a staff member is 100% seconded, performance appraisals will be the responsibility of the supervisor of the seconded position; the home department head will be informed of the appraisal and rating. Where a staff member is less than 100% seconded, the performance appraisal and rating will be determined by the supervisor of the seconded position, in consultation with the home department head.

Return to Home Department
When a staff member returns to her/his previous position, the staff member resumes the classification for that position.

If the salary earned during the secondment falls within the range of the staff member's previous classification, the normal salary administration process occurs.  If the salary earned during the secondment falls beyond the maximum of the staff member's previous classification, the salary will be reduced to the maximum of the range for the position resumed. The normal salary administration process occurs.

Funding

Unless otherwise documented in the secondment agreement, the seconding department will transfer budget to the home department to cover the seconded staff member’s full salary for the duration of the secondment agreement.  If a reclassification occurs, the seconding department will pay the difference in salary in the year in which the reclassification occurs, until May 1 of the fiscal year when the central fund will adjust the operating budget of the home department. 


*NOTE: The arrangement must include a copy of the job description for the seconded position and outline the details of the secondment, including, start and expected end dates, early termination provisions, reporting relationship in the seconded position, and salary and grade level for the seconded position.