Employment

Job Vacancies

Vacancies are determined by new position allotments; position openings due to retirements, resignations, or terminations; reclassifications of positions; and addition of special responsibilities. For more information, see the Recruiting and Hiring Employees procedure.

Applications

All persons who wish to be considered for employment, promotion, or transfer must complete an online application and submit it in PeopleAdmin Applications are accepted only for currently advertised positions. Assistance with the online application is available in the Human Resources Department if an accommodation is requested.

Employment Preference for Veterans and Spouses or Surviving Spouses

Background

In appreciation for their service to this state and this country during a period of war, and in recognition of the time and advantage lost toward the pursuit of a civilian career, veterans shall be granted preference in employment with every State of North Carolina department, agency, and institution.

Definitions

Veteran means a person who served in the Armed Forces of the United States on active duty, for reasons other than training, and has been discharged under other than dishonorable conditions.

Eligible veteran means:

  • A veteran who served during a period of war; or

  • The spouse of a disabled veteran; or

  • The surviving spouse or dependent of a veteran who dies on active duty during a period of war either directly or indirectly as the result of such service; or

  • A veteran who suffered a disabling injury for service-related reasons during peacetime; or

  • The surviving spouse or dependent of a person who served in the Armed Forces of the United States on active duty, for reasons other than training, who dies for service-related reasons during peacetime.

Policy

When evaluating two or more candidates for employment whose academic preparation, technical qualifications, and/or pertinent professional expertise are substantially equal, the college will give preference to “eligible veterans” who are citizens of the State of North Carolina and who served the state or the United States honorably in either the army, navy, marine corps, nurses’ corps, air corps, air force, coast guard, or any of the armed services during a period of war.

Faculty Employment

Full time faculty members may be employed in either a 9-month, 10.5-month, or 12-month employment period.

Faculty members may also be offered supplemental contracts for summer employment based on instructional demand, other college needs, and availability of funds. Hourly supplemental contract pay rates are calculated by dividing the base salary by the number of hours worked during their employment period. For example, a 9-month faculty member would divide their annual salary by 1560 to determine an hourly pay rate.

Faculty and staff members may be employed in overload contracts to teach if the course they teach does not interfere with their ability to fully carry out their regular responsibilities.

An instructor may receive an overload contract when they are teaching more than 21 contact hours per week as part of the regular teaching load and when their annual average teaching load exceeds 18 credit hours or 21 contact hours per week. A program director may receive an overload contract to teach a full course when they are teaching 15 or more contact hours per week as part of the regular teaching load and when the annual average teaching load meets or exceeds 12 credit hours or 15 contact hours per week. A dean may receive an overload contract to teach a full class when they are teaching eight or more contact hours per week. This would also apply to anyone working above a normally scheduled work week of 30 or more hours.

Program directors who wish to employ a full-time employee in an overload contract will need to submit an Overload Request Form. The form will need to be completed in its entirety including the courses being taught during the semester (if any), overload courses being taught for the requesting department (plus rate of pay and budget code), overload courses (if any) being taught for other departments, office hours and other duties schedule, justification for the request, and signatures for all necessary parties. Incomplete forms will be returned and will delay processing. Overload contracts are submitted by the supervisor (Program Director) and are approved by the CFO, the Executive Director of Human Resources, and the Chief Academic Officer based upon the endorsement of the employee's supervisor, employee’s department head, employee’s division head, and the hiring supervisor’s division head. Once Human Resources receives an overload contract request form, a copy will be emailed to all signed parties for contract creation and record-keeping purposes.

When requesting or endorsing an overload contract for any employee, the employee's supervisor should carefully consider whether the overload assignment will impair the employee's ability to carry out his/her regular responsibilities. For faculty members, this means not only the regularly contracted teaching assignment but also any other tasks or duties assigned to that individual. Faculty members who have approved reductions in teaching responsibilities to carry out special assignments may not be employed under overload contracts. Overload contracts will not be issued for portions of a class. (For example, if an instructor's contractual teaching load is 15 credit hours and he/she is assigned four classes of four contact hours each to meet that load, the faculty member is not eligible for a one-hour overload contract.) Employees assigned to complete a class begun by another instructor may be eligible for an overload contract.

If an employee is offered an overload contract outside the primary work assignment area, the requesting program director must obtain the prior endorsement of the employee's supervisor before requesting an overload contract. If an employee has more than one work assignment as indicated on the college's Staffing Chart, the primary assignment is the position on the Staffing Chart where the employee's name does not appear with an asterisk (*).

Requests for overload contracts must be submitted for approval sufficiently prior to the beginning of class to provide an opportunity to make another assignment should the request be denied. Overload contracts should not be prepared until the program director receives a copy of the overload request with all required signatures. 

Criteria for Creating an Overload Contract

  • When there is an emergency situation (e.g., another instructor is leaving the college or has become too ill to teach), full-time employees can take on last minute or mid-semester additions more easily than part-time instructors. Overloads should be considered if the faculty member is already teaching the maximum number of credit hours (18) or contact hours (21).

  • When a supervisor for a noncredit course has a need to hire part-time college employees to teach Customized Training programs, based on the capacity-building directive from the NCCCS Office for Continuing Education, Corporate Education, and Public Safety Services program directors are encouraged to hire current college employees. Because of this, the division is able to receive bonus money for hiring college employees.

  • In a situation when a class requires specialized training to be taught or when hiring managers cannot recruit specialized adjunct faculty, hiring full-time employees with the necessary specialized credentials may be warranted.

  • On the occasion when a class is particularly difficult to staff due to scheduling needs, hiring full-time faculty or staff may be the best way to fill the need. For example, a part-time instructor is unlikely to be willing to come to campus (or to one of our off-campus sites) in order to incorporate a one-hour class into his/her regular off-campus job work schedule (i.e. Career and College Promise).

  • When classes are added to accommodate high enrollment at the last minute, this may make it difficult to find an adjunct instructor to teach them so an overload contract may be necessary.

  • When specialized courses require knowledge of the college’s policies and procedures in addition to course content, an overload contract may be necessary. For example, instruction at an off-campus sites like Blue Cross/Blue Shield.

Process/Procedure for Administering Overload Contracts

  • Supervisors will require instructors on overload contracts to take annual leave when they miss departmental meetings, advising commitments, and other regular duties as assigned (possibly for other reasons than teaching).

  • The number of classes an instructor is teaching as a part of his/her regular load as well as the number of students in each course will be taken into consideration when approving an instructor for an overload.

  • Instructors must receive permission for one overload assignment before processing a second overload assignment. Likewise, instructors must list on the Overload Request Form, courses in the regular load as well as the courses on the overload.

  • A new overload contract request form will need to be completed for each semester. Select the most current form on file.

View the Faculty Contract policy for more information.

Faculty Academic Release Time

Faculty members may request and obtain temporary release from some portion of their contractual teaching obligation to carry out other necessary projects or tasks. The term “release time” refers to the release from instructional duties or from actual contact hours of instruction which are normally required of a full-time faculty member (including program directors and department heads) in carrying out their full load of contracted responsibilities. Release time is not considered as “leave” and should not be confused with professional or educational leave which are described in the Full-Time Educational Leave with Pay policy or with professional development/return to industry requests authorized by the Professional Development Committee.

Release time may be granted for one or more of the following purposes:

  • Development and implementation of new projects or instructional offerings, including new curriculum programs, new or restructured offerings within existing programs, non-credit courses, or non-traditional offerings.

  • Revision of existing curricula or courses as a result of formal recommendations from program review, advisory committees, competency-based education (CBE) review, program accrediting agencies/state licensure boards or regional accreditation bodies.

  • Other initiatives of strategic emphasis to the college.

Procedures

A written proposal for release time must be submitted to the chief academic officer for approval on the Faculty Release Time Request form. This form will be initiated and prepared by the instructor following consultation with the program director or discipline chair and dean. Requests for curriculum revisions should be developed with input from the Director, Curriculum Support and Development.

This proposal should include the following information:

  1. Hours per week release time requested.

  2. Description of and objectives for the activity.

  3. Rationale or justification of the proposed activity and a statement of relevance to the goals and objectives of the college, division, department or program.

  4. Estimated cost to replace the faculty member if additional part-time help is required, or the impact on the program if the replacement is by existing full-time faculty.

  5. Anticipated result of the activity.

The program director will be responsible for evaluating the proposed activity. The program director will state on the form how he or she will evaluate the activity. These forms should be submitted to the Chief Academic Officer at least one semester prior to the start of the relevant semester.

Periodic meetings between the faculty member, supervisor, and (when appropriate) director of Curriculum Development, should be held to review progress and to evaluate the activity. Upon completion of the release time and associated project, the faculty member will submit the results of the accomplished objectives and supporting documentation to the Chief Academic Officer. Supporting documentation (including course outlines, instructional packets, or plans of study) may also be submitted to the Director, Curriculum Support and Development.

Credentials Verification and Documentation

To ensure that employees are qualified to perform their job functions, Durham Tech requires that all appropriate credentials be verified within the first 60 days of employment for full-time employees, and within the first 30 days of employment for part-time employees. A Required Credentials form (found in the Human Resources folder on the employee shared drive) will need to be completed.

Existing employees who are promoted or transferred to a different role will require a new Required Credentials form. Any credentials being requested will be noted on the current credentials file, and the employee will be contacted if any credentials are needed. Employees will have 60 days from their start date in their new role to submit requested credentials.

Failure to provide satisfactory verification of education and experience claimed on the application can result in the following: extending the probationary period, reducing the salary to the level for which official verification has been provided, or initiation of termination of employment immediately or upon expiration of the probationary period.

View the Employee Credentialing procedure for more information.

Justification for Employment

Consistent with the Principles of Accreditation of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACSCOC), Durham Tech employs competent employees qualified to accomplish the institution's mission and goals. In determining faculty qualifications, the institution gives primary consideration to the individual's highest earned degree in the discipline but also may consider such factors as undergraduate and graduate coursework or degrees, related work experience, professional licensure or certification, honors and awards, documented excellence in teaching, or other demonstrated competencies or achievements. In cases where factors other than the individual's highest earned degree are considered, the prior written approval of the Vice President of Student Learning and Instructional Services/Chief Academic Officer is required. This approval is then forwarded to the Human Resources office and included in the employee's personnel file.

Employment of Relatives (Nepotism)

Persons considered for employment or promotion are selected on the basis of training, experience, and other characteristics which best suit the individual to the job and best meet the needs of the college.

When employing relatives of college employees, the college will not hire, promote, or transfer an individual to occupy a position that has influence over an immediate family member’s employment, promotion, salary administration, or other related management or personnel considerations. Immediate family members include wife, husband, mother, father, brother, sister, son, daughter, grandmother, grandfather, grandson, granddaughter, step-relations, half-relations, in-law relations, guardian, or ward.

View the Employment of Relatives/Nepotism policy for more information.

Secondary Employment

Secondary employment is defined as compensated work performed for an employer other than Durham Tech. It includes self-employment as well as work performed as an employee or as an independent contractor. It does not include unpaid volunteer efforts or other activities that do not result in direct or indirect benefit to the employee.

View the Secondary Employment policy and procedure for more information.

Salaries

Earned academic degrees, specific professional or technical credentials, full-time related work experience, and specific job responsibilities are factors considered in determining the beginning annual salary of new regular contract employees. Available financial resources, position allocation values in the college’s annual appropriation of state funds, and prevailing wages for certain occupational categories in the Triangle employment market are additional factors considered when determining starting salaries. The President makes the final determination for all salaries.

Once a beginning salary has been established, the employee may expect his/her salary to remain the same during the first year of employment. Adjustments to salary may be made in the following circumstances:

  • The employee fails to provide complete verification of either stated or required education and experience;

  • The employee assumes responsibilities above and beyond his/her regular job responsibilities or relinquishes additional responsibilities;

  • The employee receives a promotion by moving from one position to another position with new responsibilities and a new job title; or

  • State funds decrease.

Special teaching or non-teaching assignments for additional compensation may be requested for full-time employees assuming new or additional responsibilities. The Senior Vice President/Chief Instructional Officer and/or appropriate Division Head must endorse or approve the request. The request must then be authorized by the President. An Overload Contract form will need to be completed.

After the initial salary has been determined, subsequent annual increases are based on the salary increase funds appropriated by the NC General Assembly. Salary increases may also be granted if an employee is promoted or assumes certain additional responsibilities.

Part Time Employment Contracts

Durham Tech employs part-time personnel based on the College's needs for instruction and non-instructional support.

Contract for hourly part-time employees for personnel hired to teach a particular course or to perform a specific job on a temporary basis who are paid only for the number of hours worked. Follow the Part Time Hiring Process (found in the Human Resources folder/Forms for Current Employees, on the employee shared drive) for next steps.

Contract Limitation for Hourly Part-Time Employees

(Hourly Part-Time Employee Contract Limitation Policy)

Purpose

State and federal laws draw important distinctions for employees based on the number of hours they work per week and the number of hours they work per year. The purpose of this policy is to ensure the college complies with both the letter and the spirit of applicable state and federal employment laws by clearly limiting the number of hours and the duration of hourly part-time contracts.

Policy

The College and its contract administrators limit employment of hourly part-time personnel to a maximum of 25 hours per week and a total of no more than 1200 hours worked in any given 12-month period. Employment hours are calculated based on the dates of employment reflected in the employee contract and as verified by the Supervisor. For instructional personnel, the maximum duration of the hourly part-time contract is for a semester or term of instruction. For non-instructional personnel, the maximum duration of the part-time hourly contract is for a six-month period. Additional part-time hourly contracts may be issued as needed but are not implied in the terms of any contract.

Definitions

An hourly part-time contract is an employment contract issued to an employee to carry out a specific job for a specific hourly rate for a specified number of hours and length of time. Terms and conditions may vary with the job.

Procedure

Employees hired under an hourly part-time contract are paid only for the hours as specified on the contract and as actually worked and then verified by the Supervisor on a part-time employee time report. Hourly part-time employees are not eligible for paid leave or benefits. The hourly part-time employee’s Supervisor initiates the contract according to approved college processes and contract terms. Applications and appropriate documentation must be on file for hourly part-time employees.

Compensation for Part-Time Faculty

Compensation rates for curriculum instructors employed under part-time contracts are established under rules set forth by the State Board of Community Colleges. These rates are based on the instructor's level of academic preparation and are derived from the minimum salaries to be paid to full-time instructors as stipulated by the N.C. General Assembly. The part-time pay rates for curriculum instructors are established to provide some compensation for the necessary work part-time instructors do outside the classroom (such as grading assignments and conferring with students). A current schedule of part-time pay rates for curriculum instructors is available and maintained in the office of the Chief Instructional Officer.

Employment for Grant-Funded Positions

To ensure that employees are aware their position is paid through special funds or grant funds, the position posting in People Admin will identify that the position is grant funded. The search chair on the search committee should explain to the applicant’s the circumstances as it relates to the positions funding.

Grievance Procedure

If a disagreement arises between an employee and another employee, a supervisor, or the College, a formal procedure is provided for the resolution of formal grievances. This procedure is to be followed in any situation in which an employee believes that they have been treated unjustly or in a discriminatory manner. The grievance procedure is detailed in the Conflict Resolution and Grievance policy.

Orientation of New Employees

Human Resources staff contact new employees prior to their start date for employment or on their first day of employment to schedule an orientation. This orientation is usually held within the first week of employment. During orientation, the full benefits package is explained and new employees are told how to access the Employee Handbook and the Employee Benefits Brochure on the College’s website.

Probationary Period

All new full-time employees are employed with a probationary period of a minimum of three months. During this probationary period, Supervisors must evaluate the new employee’s performance monthly for a total of three times using the Probationary Evaluation Form provided on the Supervisor Checklist given to the supervisor by Human Resources. The checklist is forwarded from Human Resources to the Supervisor and Employee as part of the “Welcome Letter.” Faculty members probationary periods include the length of their first semester of employment and completion of duties related to ending the semester and submitting grade reports. During the first 60 days of the probationary period for full-time employees and during the first 30 days of the probationary period for part-time employees, the new employee must provide Human Resources with official documentation to verify education and experience that were important in his/her employment decision. The required credentials and their due dates become a special condition of the employee's completion of the probationary period of employment.

The Supervisor completes the new employee's final evaluation prior to the expiration of the new employee's probationary period, this will then be forwarded through the supervisory chain to Human Resources. Attached to the final evaluation will be the three probationary evaluation forms. If the probationary period needs to be extended or a recommendation of termination is requested, the supervisor will need to send a memo to the Executive Director in Human Resources explaining the reason for the request along with supporting documentation. The Executive Director will then forward the request onto the President once they have evaluated the documentation.

If the employee has not verified all of the required credentials during the probationary period, this could impact upon the college’s decision to continue employment. If the decision is made not to offer employment beyond the probationary period, the employee is notified by certified letter at least 10 days prior to expiration of the probationary period.

Promotion and Transfer

Durham Tech recognizes the need for employees to reach their individual career potential. The College’s established promotion and transfer procedure, which is detailed here, provides an avenue for employee advancement within the institution.

The Human Resources Department posts internal vacancies. Qualified current employees may apply for internal job openings as positions become available. For positions posted internally, current employees and individuals employed by the college within the past three months may apply. Employees desiring to apply for internal promotion or transfer should complete an online Employment Application.

Employees may receive promotions in one of the following ways:

  • Reclassification of a position (i.e., accounting technician to accountant, junior programmer to programmer);

  • Assignment of special responsibilities (i.e., program director, associate or assistant dean); or

  • Appointment or transfer to a higher-level position with expanded job responsibilities and a different job title.

Recommendations for promotion are initiated by the employee’s immediate Supervisor and must be endorsed by the Division Head, VP, and Executive VP or Chief of Staff with final approval by the President. Refer to the Personnel Change Request Procedure.

An employee may be transferred from one department to another without going through the normal transfer or promotion process when the administration considers the move to be in the best interest of the college and/or the employee. An employee may be reassigned to another area, given additional duties or responsibilities, or have duties or responsibilities reassigned.

Employees usually considered ineligible for promotions and transfers include those with less than three months of full-time continuous service at Durham Tech and an employee whose conduct and performance are unacceptable in their current position and are in an active performance management process.

Background checks will be conducted on all new hire employees and those employees receiving a promotion and/or transfer less than a year since their last background check was completed.

Reduction in Force Policy

Please consult the Reduction in Force (RIF) policy in the Policies and Procedures manual.

Separation from the College

The following procedure applies when an employee voluntarily separates from their employment with Durham Tech:

Employees wishing to retire or resign should give a 30-day notice to the College. To give this notice, the employee is to write a letter addressed to the President indicating their intention to retire or resign no fewer than 30 days prior to the date of their desired departure and attach it to an email that is sent to the President, Director, Human Resources and Talent Management, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Talent and Equity Officer, the appropriate Division Head, and the immediate Supervisor.

The employee obtains an exit checklist from the Human Resources and Talent Management Department to ensure that all college property has been returned and that the employee has been counseled and cleared in areas regarding retirement, leave, insurance, and related matters. Once Supervisors in all required departments have initialed the exit checklist, the Business Office is authorized to release the final paycheck.

Human Resources and Talent Management will conduct an exit interview with all full-time employees separating from the College. Exit interviews can be extended to part-time employees if requested. Should the employee not return college property, the College reserves the right to withhold the direct deposit of an employee’s final paycheck and deduct reasonable costs for unreturned property (including keys) that is documented as being assigned to the employee. During the exit interview, the employee leaving the college should instruct Human Resources and Talent Management as to their preferences regarding releasing information not already a matter of public record.

Re-Employment of Retired Persons

Retired persons may be re-employed in accordance with the needs of Durham Tech, Social Security regulations, and policies regulating the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System. The NC General Assembly has legislated that every state retiree must have a defined break from state employment service before any re-employment with the state. For those who retire after October 1, 2005, a six-month break with absolutely no service rendered to a state employer is required to protect the tax-exempt status of the Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System. Pre-existing agreements between a state employer and a retiree to return to work following retirement are also prohibited. Durham Tech limits retirees’ service to hourly part-time contracts as an indication of the short-term nature of their re-employment.