HUMAN RESOURCES at MIT

2.1 Hiring and Placement

Responsibility for the recruitment of candidates for non-academic positions is shared between the hiring supervisor and the Office of Employment Services. Supervisors are asked to provide a detailed description of job duties and experience requirements for each available position to begin a search to identify qualified candidates from within the Institute and from external recruitment sources.

2.1.1 Definition of Payroll Categories

The payrolls for which the Human Resources Department has primary responsibility with regard to employment, recruitment, and salary administration are the following non-academic Institute payroll categories:

Administrative Staff - individuals with professional or administrative responsibilities appointed within the departments and offices of the central Institute administration.

Sponsored Research Staff - individuals with professional research or administrative responsibilities appointed on research projects or programs within research centers, laboratories, or academic departments.

Support Staff - These appointments encompass positions involving duties of a primarily clerical/secretarial and administrative support nature, as well as some which support the Institute's data processing operation, the library and accounting functions, and some specialized research positions.

Terms, conditions and benefits may differ in some respects from those provided to other staff groups. Support staff positions are covered by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act and are subject to the Act's overtime provisions.

Service Staff - These classifications represent research support, maintenance support, the trades, and other services such as housing, security, and laboratory protection. The Service Staff are union hourly-paid classifications.

Terms, conditions and benefits may differ in some respects from those provided to other staff groups. Service staff positions are covered by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act and are subject to the Act's overtime provisions.

Appointments in the payroll categories described above may or may not have a defined term limit and end date. In all cases, appointments in these categories may be terminated for cause at any time, including misconduct or unsatisfactory performance. (See also Section 6.3, Termination for Poor Performance or Failure to Comply with Institute Policy.) They may also be terminated for lack of work or funds or for other operational reasons, with notice as provided in Section 6.2.

For more detailed discussions of academic and research staff categories, see Policies and Procedures: A Guide for Faculty and Staff Members.

2.1.2 Types of Non-Academic Appointments

See details on types of non-academic appointments.

2.1.3 Request for Personnel

As soon as it is known that a job will be available, a Request for Personnel Form must be sent to the Human Resources Officer assigned to the department, with all necessary signatures of approval and payroll accounting information. This form authorizes that a person may be hired, as well as provides information about the job, enabling Human Resources officers to recruit and refer qualified applicants. Special emphasis should be give to the position description. Some points that should be covered are the following:

  1. the specific as well as general responsibilities involved in the job;
  2. the particular field of research or administration;
  3. the people with whom the employee can expect to interact (students, visitors, faculty, etc.);
  4. the number and types of positions occupied by persons with whom the employee will work (six faculty, a research team of physicists, one-person office, etc.).

The "Special Qualifications" section of the Request for Personnel Form should include the applicable experience and/or educational requirements of the position, and any particular skills needed to perform the duties required.

2.1.4 Posting of Available Positions

Brief job descriptions of most non-academic positions on campus and at Lincoln Laboratory are posted in the weekly insert to the M.I.T. publication Tech Talk entitled "M.I.T. Positions Available," on-line through the Human Resources Department web page, and on the job board located outside of the Human Resources Department (Building E19, Room 215). These postings inform members of the M.I.T. community of the availability of specific positions and facilitate the identification of lateral and promotional transfer opportunities by current employees. Additionally, the postings initiate the external recruitment of qualified individuals with special emphasis on the identification of disabled and Vietnam-Era veterans, candidates with disabilities, and underrepresented minority and women candidates.

Departments may request the advertisement of positions in professional journals or local newspapers. External advertising should follow the Tech Talk posting and/or consultation with the department's Human Resources Officer regarding the most effective advertising sources. To insure compliance with Institute policy all advertisements are to be placed through the Office of Employment Services; however, the charges incurred are in most cases the responsibility of the department.

2.1.5 Posting Requirement under Contractual Agreements


Positions covered under collective bargaining agreements are generally subject to posting and bidding requirements as outlined within each union contract. These procedures are followed routinely for each vacancy and should precede any general posting in Tech Talk.

The union posting and the Tech Talk posting may take place coincidentally when the vacancy is an entry-level position and no one in the respective bargaining units has contractual layoff or reemployment rights to that vacancy.

Where specified in the union agreements, union members have the right to apply for vacancies within their own bargaining unit before applicants from outside the bargaining unit may be considered.

A vacancy filled through the union posting procedure is considered to have fulfilled the Institute's general posting requirements.

2.1.6 Waiver of Posting Requirement

Under special circumstances a supervisor may request a waiver of the Institute posting requirement for a particular position. Requests will be evaluated on an individual basis by the appropriate Human Resources Officer for the department and must be approved in writing by the Senior Officer for the area for all positions exempt from overtime pay. The posting requirement for positions covered by a union contractual agreement may not be waived.

2.1.7 Employment of Members of the Administrative or Sponsored Research Staffs by Two Departments

A staff member should not perform services for another department (other than those that are a normal part of his or her duties at the Institute) without permission from the Department Head of the home department. Non-faculty staff members employed on a full-time basis may not receive additional compensation from the Institute for extra work commitments.

Limited exceptions may be considered, on a case-by-case basis, with the approval of the area Dean or Vice President provided that:

  1. an individual possesses special skills not related to his/her primary work and duties;
  2. it is in M.I.T.'s interest to use these skills;
  3. prior permission is obtained; and
  4. a supplement to the individual's salary is agreed upon to cover the special activity, and is added to the individual's annual pay (e.g. $500 per year to work as an assistant coach).

Such cases should be presented via the Director of Personnel for Employee Relations.

Supervisors should determine whether an individual is already employed by M.I.T. on any payroll or in consulting status before making an employment agreement, regardless of the duration of the appointment.

Supervisors who wish to employ a part-time staff member outside his or her home department should discuss the particular situation with their Human Resources Officer. (See Policies and Procedures for details regarding joint appointments for academic staff.)

2.1.8 Employment of Members of the Support or Service Staffs by Two Departments

Support or Service Staff members may not normally be employed by two departments on a permanent basis. Arrangements may be made on a case-by-case basis for a part-time employee to do work comparable to his or her permanent position at M.I.T. Additional appointments must be at the same grade level and salary rate as the employee's primary appointment. This work should have the approval of supervisors and Administrative Officers in both departments as well as the appropriate Human Resources Officers. Such arrangements will be made only when the operational needs of the Institute require it and only when the arrangements can be made without undue administrative and payroll costs.

Supervisors should consider issues such as the accrual of additional sick leave and vacation hours by the home department and the incurring of premium pay liability in the evaluation of such a proposal. These situations are effected by a personnel action changing the individual's base work week and may involve an account charge transfer. (See Section 5.2, Implementing Changes in Employment Status).

Part-time hourly employees who wish to work more hours at M.I.T. on a regular schedule should discuss their interest with their Human Resources Officer. If work demands in their department do not permit such a change, a transfer to another position requiring more hours may be necessary.