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Re: Hiring on sponsored projects Herbert B. Chermside 12 Feb 2005 12:13 EST

If your sponsored program supported individuals were state employees like
employees on other funds, then the state or the institution is fully
responsible for any benefits that come as part of the retirement package
just the same as retirees who were not sponsored program funded.

The calculations for benefits should have always had an amount for
contribution to retirement.  Therefore all employees should have "credit"
in the retirement system.  "Who is responsible" is whoever received those
payments from the benefits calculation.  And those payments (along with any
additional direct funding by the legislature for retires, as you are a
state institution) should adequately fund whatever is promised to the retirees.

The fact of being employed from sponsored funds should make no difference,
unless you have established a category of employee whose retirement package
-- which is a matter of contract, or of implied contract created by
employment regulations in the institution -- differs from all other employees.

Chuck

At 01:31 PM 2/9/2005, you wrote:
>What about retiring on sponsored projects?  This is a tangent from the
>current discussion, but it's come up in our office - where several people
>are paid strictly by grant funds and are considered state employees.
>
>When state employees (whose salaries have always been paid completely from
>grant funds) retire, is the university obligated to pick up the state's
>portion of benefits - such as co-pays for insurance premiums?
>
>Our university will make the case that since there are no grant funds to
>reimburse the institution, they won't incur the cost and it's not their
>responsibility.  People with retirement in sight (not me, unfortunately) are
>concerned.
>
>Any thoughts?
>
>
>Marcia Walker
>Assistant Director
>Consortium for Education, Research and Technology
>1725 Claiborne
>Shreveport, La.  71103
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG] On Behalf Of
>Herbert B. Chermside
>Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2005 12:50 PM
>To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
>Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] Hiring on sponsored projects
>
>I agree with John B.
>
>At the institution I retired from (a state institution), everyone hired by
>the University had to be recruited in compliance with EEO requirements,
>EXCEPT  a) students, and b) post-doc employees (as opposed to fellows, who
>are not employees!).
>
>Naming an individual in a proposal has no effect on the requirement to meet
>your institution's EEO employment requirements.  HOWEVER, if for the
>individual proposed (applies whether named or TBN (to be named), has a
>description of qualifications and duties in the proposal, you can use that
>in the description for recruitment.  If it is carefully drawn, the
>preferred candidate is always in the short list to interview (sometimes is
>the only candidate!), but EEO requirements are met.  Don't let a lazy PI or
>department use a generic job description, unless they want a generic
>employee!
>
>It is wise to discuss the situation with HR and EEO.  They should know that
>the job specifications for a particular position on a particular sponsored
>program may be more detailed, or require special skills, as opposed to an
>applicant for a generic "lab assistant" job.  They also need to know that a
>sponsored program needs the position filled ASAP after project start date,
>so it is wise to work out a hiring process that can be started before the
>award is received, with only the final offer to come afterwards.
>
>And much the same applies to getting consultants.  Make the consult
>description, or consultant qualifications, specific to the needs of the
>project; that information should be in the proposal, so you can cut and
>paste!
>
>Chuck
>
>
>At 12:21 PM 2/2/2005, you wrote:
> >How interesting.  I have recently met with HR and Affirmative Action at
> >my institution (also a public, state institution) about this same issue
> >The discussion came about because a PI insisted that she had to hire
> >someone named in a grant application.  While her need to hire this
> >person was something of a straw dog, the issue itself is very important
> >and we wanted to come up with an institutional guideline before it
> >happened again.
> >
> >The consensus here was that naming on a grant has no "legal" authority.
> > From the HR perspective, it bypasses the approved institutional hiring
> >procedures.  From the Affirmative Action perspective, it constitutes an
> >unofficial "waiver" of pre-hire AA review.
> >
> >Does your HR office approve this process?  What about issues of
> >affirmative action review?
> >
> >John
> >
> >John R. Baumann, Ph.D.
> >Associate Vice Chancellor for Research
> >Director, Office of Research Services
> >5100 Rockhill Road  (US Postal Service)
> >5211 Rockhill Road (Courier Service)
> >Kansas City, MO 64110
> >
> >816.235.1303 (v)
> >816.235.6532 (f)
> >
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG] On
> >Behalf Of Parker, Paul
> >Sent: Monday, January 31, 2005 3:10 PM
> >To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
> >Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] Hiring on sponsored projects
> >
> >Good afternoon.  It is our practice if a person is named in a proposal
> >no further recruitment process is required.  This does vary from our
> >regular recruitment process but it is our position that the sponsor
> >and the PI have agreed on the expertise required and the key people
> >critical to the project.
> >
> >We encourage our PI's to start recruiting for staff as early as possible
> >even prior to an award being made.  Since all of our recruitments are
> >contingent upon availability of funds if an award is not made we do not
> >have a commitment to hire.
> >
> >I hope this information is useful.
> >
> >Paul
> >
> >Paul C. Parker
> >Assistant Vice President
> >  for Research Administration
> >State University of New York
> >PO Box 6000
> >Binghamton, NY  13902-6000
> >607-777-6752   607-777-4354 (fax)
> >email:  xxxxxx@binghamton.edu
> >
> >
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG]On Behalf
> >Of Lori Messer
> >Sent: Monday, January 31, 2005 1:40 PM
> >To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
> >Subject: [RESADM-L] Hiring on sponsored projects
> >
> >
> >Good Afternoon,
> >
> >Would you be willing to share your institution's policies with respect
> >to hiring on sponsored projects?
> >
> >Specifically, I would be interested to know the process of hiring people
> >who are not current employees but are named in the proposal budget.
> >Does this process vary from your normal hiring process?  (Ex. Are
> >positions posted internally or for a shorter period of time?)  If the
> >hiring process is different, how does it relate to your Affirmative
> >Action Statement?
> >
> >Also, are PI's allowed to start the recruitment process prior to
> >officially receiving an award?  If so, does your HR department need a
> >fund or account number in order to start the recruitment/posting
> >process?
> >
> >Thank you,
> >
> >Lori
> >
> >Lori Messer, MPA, CRA
> >Director
> >Research & Sponsored Programs
> >Wake Forest University
> >P.O. Box 7528 Reynolda Station
> >Winston-Salem, NC  27109
> >(336) 758-5888
> >(336) 758-1959 fax
> >
> >
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>
>Herbert "Chuck" Chermside, CRA
>Director Emeritus, VCU Sponsored Programs
>Executive Director, Research Administrators Certification Council
>1915 Robindale Rd.
>Richmond, VA 23235-3931
>804-320-5502
>xxxxxx@verizon.net
>
>
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Herbert "Chuck" Chermside, CRA
Director Emeritus, VCU Sponsored Programs
Executive Director, Research Administrators Certification Council
1915 Robindale Rd.
Richmond, VA 23235-3931
804-320-5502
xxxxxx@verizon.net

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