Guidance for Managers - Casual Workers

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Principles for working with teaching affiliates

Following longstanding independent and collaborative exploration of the support currently offered to Teaching Affiliates, on behalf of the University, Human Resources and colleagues representing each Faculty, together with UCU Branch representatives, have agreed a shared commitment to ensure fair pay and conditions through a new set of Principles for Working with Teaching Affiliates that will apply to both current and new engagements.

Principles for Working with Teaching Affiliates

Faculty Teaching Norms

Teaching related roles

Staff supervising casual workers involved in teaching should be aware of the University's Principles for Working with Teaching Affiliates. Time allowances for these activities are set out in the Faculty Teaching Norms documents available on the Principles for Working with Teaching Affiliates page.

Casual worker assignment request

You will need to raise a position and complete and submit a job requisition in UniCore, which will require approval before the vacancy can be advertised or filled. The approval route is dependent on the position’s funding type, please see the Recruitment SharePoint site for further details.

Please also ensure that you select the appropriate job level that starts with ‘CAS’, further information on this can be accessed on the UniCore SharePoint site.  You are able to log-in to the UniCore system by entering your University username and password.

All training resources relating to the use of UniCore for casual worker requests/extension/change to project code are available.

Within the posting description, within the job requisition, you should select ‘casual worker’ to create your job advert. You should populate the template using the relevant headers relating to the casual worker assignment, for example the hourly rate, closing date, about (purpose) the role, about you (essential skills, knowledge, experience, qualifications and/or behaviours required). In addition, please ensure that you have added the contact details in the about the University section.

You should ensure that you have a shortlisting criteria which matches the posting description (job advert), similarly if you choose to interview. Please note that interviews are not mandatory for casual worker assignments.

You should ensure that you enter any notes or scores, for the recruitment process, directly into UniCore, against the applicant’s record.

In exceptional circumstances, if you have already identified a candidate, then you must add their name to the job requisition and provide their contact details. This will then enable the candidate to complete an application form for the position. Note the position must be approved before this action can be taken.

Right to work in the UK (including student visa holders)

A right to work check must be completed for all casual workers before they commence work with the University.  This applies to all candidates of all nationalities, including British nationals.

A right to work checklist must be completed for all casual workers and, for successful candidates, be uploaded to UniCore against their record. HR will not be able to issue a casual letter of assignment until a right to work checklist and appropriate documents have been verified.

All copies of right to work in the UK documentation should be securely destroyed once the relevant documents have been uploaded to UniCore and the job requisition has been filled.

Most international students studying for more than six months are given student visas allowing them to work part-time. This means up to 20 hours work a week during term-time and full-time work during their vacation periods. Where any courses are below degree level, then a student visa allows them to work up to 10 hours per week.  As a manager you have a legal obligation to ensure that the weekly hours worked does not exceed the permitted hours under their visa.

Casual worker rates of pay

In the majority of cases, casual workers are engaged in work that can be linked to similar role requirements in an already established role. In these circumstances, the requesting manager should indicate a similar payment based on the University's salary scales. If you are unsure about the rate of pay to be made for different types of work, then please contact the Casual Worker Team for further information, tel: 0115 74 84800 or email: br-hr-casuals@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk.

The casual worker position request requires the entry of an hourly rate of pay for each casual worker; this must concur with the University's salary scales.

Rates of pay for casual staff can be found on the casual workers scales tab on the salary scales spreadsheet.

On both the casual worker position request, and the offer questionnaire, please ensure that it is only the hourly rate quoted, excluding any holiday pay (holiday pay will be calculated by Payroll at 12.07% for each hour worked).

For further information regarding holiday pay for casual workers, please contact Payroll Services, tel: 0115 95 15648 or email: payroll@nottingham.ac.uk.

All casual worker rates of pay and hours worked for the payment must adhere to the National Minimum Wage.

Casual application form

A candidate must apply for the vacancy using the link in the advert.

In exceptional circumstances, if you have identified a candidate for the position, it is only after the casual worker position is approved (by those within the approval chain) and then a job requisition has been completed and submitted, by the manager, that you can add the candidate to the job requisition as an applicant. The casual worker will be sent an email requesting for them to complete their application. Please ensure that you provide a personal email address for the worker so that they can register and if successful, activate their University account when they join.

Guidance is provided to the casual worker on how to complete the application process.

Upon receipt of the casual worker application form, they will be issued their letter of assignment.

When should the casual worker start working?

The casual worker should not typically start work before the casual worker request has been authorised and the letter of assignment issued.

You will need to agree with the casual worker the details surrounding their first day of work. The casual worker should submit their timecard for the work undertaken on a weekly basis for authorisation.

Induction

In UniCore, on the first day of your casual workers assignment, you will be automatically assigned a journey which will provide prompts on actions and activities you need to undertake as part of the induction process. You must ensure that this meets the local requirements and update where appropriate.

Authorisation of timecards

You will need to check and authorise the weekly timecard submitted by the casual worker, in UniCore. You should also address any queries directly with the casual worker prior to authorising the timecard in the UniCore system. It is important that you maintain a record of the hours that you authorise for the casual worker to ensure that this does not exceed the total hours authorised within your original request (job requisition).

If the casual worker is involved in a number of assignments simultaneously, then the hours worked for each assignment should be claimed on different timecards and all authorised in a timely manner.

Please note that if there are multiple assignments and one weekly timecard is not approved then all timecards for that week are impacted and the casual worker will not receive payment for any work undertaken.

Approved timecards will be processed by Payroll in line with the payroll deadlines for payment on the official pay date for that month. Any timecards received in Payroll after that date will be paid on the official pay date for the following month. Payroll will be unable to process a timecard without the correct authorisation.

If no timecard claim forms are submitted until the very end of an assignment, there is a risk that the record may have been closed. All outstanding timecards should be submitted at the latest; within two months of the projected end date of the assignment (project end date is indicated on the letter of assignment).  It is the managers responsibility to ensure that all timecards are completed and approved prior at the end of the assignment.

Extension requests

If an extension to a casual worker assignment is appropriate, then a request will need to be submitted via UniCore using the extend casual assignment document of record (please see the User Guides). Please ensure you select the job levels that start with CAS when making your request.

A typical casual worker assignment should be for less than 12 weeks unless the nature of work is classed as infrequent and/or irregular. Those assignments could be for a much longer period, but must be reviewed regularly, with your HR Business Partner, (at least annually) to ensure it remains in line with our casual engagement principles.

Assignment change of project code

If the project code originally assigned to the costs associated with a casual worker is changing within the duration of their assignment you will need to submit a request a position change in UniCore, which is subject to approval.

Termination

A casual worker engagement can be terminated at any time upon one week's notice in writing, or if one or both parties wish to end the engagement. If a casual worker assignment is due to finish, please complete the end of assignment notification document of record in UniCore, prior to the assignment end date.

The termination process should also be completed in UniCore, please note that where there is more than one assignment associated with the casual, then the termination process should not be initiated.

For assistance please contact the Casual Worker Team.