University of Utah Temporary Hiring Freeze

 
Webpage last updated: 5/21/2020
 

This guidance is effective April 28, 2020. As senior leaders continue to meet, and as the institution gains experience with the process, guidance may be modified in the coming days and weeks. Updates will be posted here.

As the University of Utah responds to COVID-19, we have put a temporary hiring freeze on many positions after April 6, 2020. As we work with our students, faculty and staff to navigate these uncertain times, our campus community deserves our gratitude – and our full support. Accordingly, to focus available resources to support our people and ensure that we emerge well-positioned for ongoing success, we are instituting a temporary hiring freeze. This directive does not apply to University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics or other mandatory U of U Health Academics employees (U of U Category I), whose employees are at the forefront in helping our state manage this health care challenge. (Please visit employment.utah.edu). Additionally, the university will make exceptions to the hiring freeze for other essential hires, with approval from the cognizant Vice President. We know that this pause in hiring will present challenges for many of us, and we appreciate your patience, understanding and partnership as we strive to fulfill our mission as the University for Utah.

Please coordinate closely with University Human Resource Management (UHRM) until a halt to the freeze has been announced. If a job offer has already been made before 11:59 pm on April 6, 2020, please ensure the cognizant Vice President is notified. If a job is currently posted, but no job offer has been made yet, cognizant Vice President approval will be required prior to making the job offer. Also, please carefully consider whether or not to proceed with open postings, then coordinate with UHRM on postings to be closed (until further notice). To ensure that priority web traffic is given to essential positions and facilitate a stronger candidate experience, we request that you cancel any posted position that is effected by the temporary hiring freeze and notify applicants of their status. An email template has been set up for this in PeopleAdmin.

The goal is to preserve current workforce at current pay level as much as possible.

Definitions:

• Category I: Mandatory Required on Campus or at Health Care Facilities.
• Main Campus staff: Employees and/or functions designated as mandatory, requiring employees to be physically located on campus in order to maintain campus systems and operations if they are healthy without symptoms.
• U of U Health Academics Faculty and Staff: All employees necessary for the direct on-site support of clinical operations, patient care, and essential research activities if they are healthy without COVID-19 symptoms.
• Category IIA: Not required on campus and able to telework. Employees and/or functions where employees are able to work remotely in order to maintain campus systems, campus operations, clinical operations, and patient care.
• Category IIB: Not required on campus, and unable to telework. Employees and/or functions where employees are unable to telework and for whom there are no alternative work assignments or work available.

Requirements:

Please carefully review the VP Approval Matrix here: https://www.hr.utah.edu/serviceTeams/HiringFreeze_Decision_Matrix.php.  This document outlines what employment actions (including job postings, job offers, staff reclassifications, and other employment transactions) require cognizant VP approval.

Procedures for departments to coordinate with UHRM after they’ve received cognizant VP approval:

• Job posting procedure: https://www.hr.utah.edu/serviceTeams/HiringFreeze_Job_Posting.php 
• Job offers / hiring proposal procedure: https://www.hr.utah.edu/serviceTeams/HiringFreeze_Job_Offer.php 
• ePAF procedure (hire, transfer, pay adjustment, return from short work break, off-cycle increase, etc.): https://www.hr.utah.edu/serviceTeams/HiringFreeze_ePAF.php 

With any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to your assigned HR team. To find contact information, please go here:https://www.hr.utah.edu/contact/search.php.  With questions about the procedure to request cognizant Vice President exceptions, please send an email to mark.winter@utah.edu.
 

Other Resources:

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Hiring Freeze Guidance Memo from the Cabinet
• Hiring Status Planning form
• @theU article from 4-6-2020
• VP Approval Matrix
• Reclassification Approval Process
• Job posting procedure for departments
• Job offer procedure for departments
• ePAF request procedure for departments
• Resource Planning Guidelines for Near-Term Financial Operations.