Guidelines on the Appointment of Temporary Instructors

The following guidelines are intended to insure that temporary instructors are treated fairly and with respect, recognizing that our ethical obligations are greater than legal requirements.

1. Definition of Temporary Instructors: Sections 4.4.1-4.4.3 of the Regents Bylaws distinguish among Special Appointments (which include temporary and part-time positions), appointments for a Specific Term, and Continuous Appointments. Temporary Instructors are a subdivision of Special Appointments. When in doubt about the nature of a position, refer to the Regents Bylaws.
   
   The University hires temporary instructors on a semester-by-semester or on an academic-year (nine month) basis unless other terms are specifically authorized in writing and approved for the particular temporary employee by the Dean and Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.
   
2. Convertible Lines: On occasion an instructor is hired onto a line that is advertised as one that may be converted into a tenure-leading position. Chairs and other faculty should be careful not to mislead such temporary instructors. In these rare cases the position can be converted without a new national search, but conversion to a tenure-leading position should never be promised to a temporary instructor. Any such arrangement must have prior written approval from the Dean and Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.
   
3. Job Announcements: Appointments for period of four and one-half or nine months need not, but may be, advertised nationally. However, vacancies shall be publicized on campus and, if appropriate, in newspapers to allow application by all qualified candidates, whether or not they are known to the department.
   
4. Selection: Appointments may be made at the Chair's discretion. A search committee need not, but may be, appointed to assist the Chair.
   
5. Letters of Offer: Chairs must record all notifications of the terms and duration of employment in writing, both in the letter of offer and in subsequent correspondence where the terms of employment are an issue. Commitments or understandings arrived at during discussions must be confirmed in writing by memo or letter. We are not expected to be lawyers or cover aspects of employment that can be assumed in the name of common sense, but it is often better to verse on being legalistic than to risk future difficulty by assuming that temporary instructors understand our policies.
   
   The initial letter should also remind new temporary instructors that they, like all new University employees, must complete an I-9 form for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
   
6. Notification of Intent not to Appoint: All unsuccessful applicants shall be notified in writing in a reasonable time.
   
7. Benefits: Instructors who are at least .50 FTE and are on the payroll for at least six months are eligible to receive life and health insurance benefits. In most cases, temporary instructors are not paid during the summer, but if employment is anticipated during the fall they can, through the department, ask the Benefits office (by early March) to double deduct premiums during March, April, and May to pre-pay their insurance during the summer. For more detailed information on policies affecting the benefits of temporary instructors, contact the Insured Benefits and Retirement Section at 2-2600.
   
8. Warnings and Notification of Non-reappointment: The experience of apparently continuous part-time employment may lead a temporary instructor to believe that his or her employment is guaranteed. To avoid this misconception, chairs and directors should inform all temporary instructors in each semester's letter of appointment that their appointment in the following semester will depend on enrollment demands, budgetary constraints, and other conditions.
   
   When a temporary instructor has been employed for three or more years on a continuing basis, the Dean's Office expects special written notifications of non-reappointment to be made three months before the start of the new semester.
   
9. The Danger of Misleading Temporary Instructors: Chairs must be careful not to make oral statements to temporary instructors that imply that employment in a future semester is insured, unless it is part of a written commitment previously approved by the Dean. This can be a special problem when a talented temporary instructor is a potential candidate for an anticipated tenure leading position. Such instructors can be encouraged to apply, but any suggestion of special favorable treatment would be in violation of Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity policies.
   
10. Department Services for Temporary Instructors: As a courtesy, a department may allow temporary instructors use of departmental support services that are not specified in the contract, but it should not allow any appearance that these are part of the terms of employment. Unhappiness and confusion result when practices are seen as policies and courtesies as rights.