Hiring Procedures - Administration Staff Recruitment

• Related Documents: Hiring Policy, Flexible Work Policy
• Responsible Role or Unit: Chief Human Resources Officer
• Owner:  Vice-President, Administration and Operations
• Date of Issue: November 2024
• Review and/or Revision Dates:

I.    Recruitment Planning

1.    The recruitment planning meeting involves the human resources Talent Acquisition Centre of Expertise team (TACoE) and the Hiring Leader, and kicks off the recruitment process. The meeting will include several key steps including a review of the job description, understanding of key requirements of the role and qualifications needed for the ideal candidate profile.

2.    This stage includes the Hiring Leader working with the TACoE to review staff diversity self identification data (DSID) to develop the outreach (advertising) strategy; the strategy will be focused on attracting a diverse candidate pool and an inclusive recruitment experience.

3.    After the planning meeting, there should be an agreement between the talent acquisition specialist and Hiring Leader on key dates and activities such as the posting period, advertising strategy, interview dates and the assessment package.  Further meetings may take place to discuss the above items as required. 

II.    Posting/Advertising/Sourcing

1.    To actively seek to attract and retain a diverse workforce, valuing the unique perspectives and experiences that individuals from different backgrounds bring to the University, all Vacancy postings in the Senior Administration, MAC, OPSEU 596 Unit 1 and CUPE 233 groups must, at a minimum: 

a.    Have an updated job description within 5 years;

b.    Include a salary range;

c.    Include an equivalency of experience and education statement where possible; 

d.    Include an equity statement; and

e.    Be posted internally and externally following the relevant Hiring Procedures and collective agreement provisions;

2.    Posting a Vacancy externally may not be required in the following two scenarios, however all other steps in the recruitment process must be completed:

a.    Where there is department restructuring and current employees may be displaced

b.   Where a FTCE Vacancy becomes available and there is a term role on the same team.

3.    The TACoE will draft the job advertisement in collaboration with the Hiring Leader. Human Resources (HR) will support the Hiring Leader to validate the qualifications and requirements of the role to ensure it meets the need for posting with an appropriate job grade and salary range.

4.    The job ad will be written by the TACoE using inclusive language that seeks to mitigate bias and communicate the department and university's commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).  Additional details may include: position title, grade, salary and hiring range, equivalency statement for education, including experience, knowledge, skills and abilities. location (hybrid or on-campus), and application deadline.

5.    The TACoE will support the Hiring Leader to establish an equivalency of experience and/or education statement for the position to be included in the job ad before a vacancy is posted. 

6.    The following equivalency matrix creates a starting point for discussion for the Hiring Leader

7.    A broad advertising strategy developed by the TACoE based on the discussion with the Hiring Leader will include outreach to diverse communities and the use of partnerships, networks, social media and targeted recruitment activities (sourcing). Outreach efforts will be high touch with a focus on direct sourcing of diverse talent to create future pipelines of candidates, and reducing time to find candidates and fill positions. 

8.    TACoE will engage with the University’s community networks and external community agencies to expand the University’s presence.

9.    For MAC Vacancies, TACoE will provide guidance on the ideal posting timeline. To start, Vacancies must be posted internally and externally for a minimum of 7 days with a recommendation of 10 days, to maximize reach and create robust and diverse applicant pools.

10.    Posting requirements for unionized positions are subject to posting requirements as outlined in the relevant collective agreements.

11.    TACoE will: 

a.    Proactively source and target outreach to equity-deserving groups, and advise and develop strategies to increase diverse applicant pools

b.    Develop strategies with Hiring Leaders to increase representation in talent pools through the use of diversity self-identification data.

c.    Use  diversity self-identification data to ensure increased representation in pipelines and advise on diversity representation rate of the applicant pool.

d.    Guide Hiring Leaders on the recruitment planning process and supporting them to be intentional in embedding principles of equity, diversity and inclusion in recruiting, interviewing and hiring qualified candidates.

III.    Screening

1.    TACoE will review and screen resumes based on the following:

a.    Standardized requirements, skills and qualifications for the position

b.    Equivalences, including relevant international experience, lived experience and volunteer experience

c.    Collective agreement considerations (where applicable)

d.    The equity goals of the department

Based on these criteria, a shortlist of applicants is provided for consideration to the Hiring Leader. 

2.    Subject to collective agreement provisions, the TACoE will use the DSID and intentionally seek out qualified candidates who identify as part of an equity-deserving group to ensure a diverse talent pool of applicants available for Hiring Leaders to review and consider for interviews. 

3.    From the provided short-list, the Hiring Leader with input from the TACoE, will determine which applicants will be contacted for phone screens and/or interviews.

4.    The TACoE will inform internal applicants not qualified for a role that they will not participate in the selection process, and provide feedback if requested.

5.    The TACoE will undertake a pre-screening interview of all Candidates to ensure the Candidate meets the minimum qualifications of the Vacancy, and will include the Candidate's compensation expectations.

6.    The phone screen is conducted by the TACoE. Prior to conducting the phone screen, a set of questions is developed and asked of each applicant with the answers documented.

7.    In addition to confirming the experience and education related to the requirements of the  position, the phone screen will confirm: 

a.    The candidate's authorization to work in Canada. 

b.    Residence within Ontario or intention to relocate as outlined in the Out of Province Work Procedures. 

c.    Agreement to the on-campus or hybrid requirements of the position as outlined in the Flexible Work Policy.

d.    Salary expectations and hiring range as per applicable compensation scales.

8.    Requirements for consideration of bargaining unit employees as outlined in applicable collective agreements will be followed.

9.    During shortlisting and screening activities, there is a strong focus on managing bias and positioning diversity of candidates as an asset to ensure a broad pool of diverse and qualified applicants. This could include: pre-training on unconscious bias, debrief sessions and naming the importance of experience working with the local communities that the position will serve.

IV.    Interviewing

1.    The Hiring Leader determines the interview panel. Every effort should be made to  conduct interviews that are structured, consistent, and focus on job-related competencies to ensure fairness and minimize bias.

2.    An interview panel for a Vacancy must consist of a minimum of three members, including the Hiring Leader. Hiring Leaders must strive for diverse representation among interview panel members in order to offer their perspective in the Recruitment Process and the presentation or performance of Candidates.

3.    Ensuring a diverse representation of panel members with lived experience will provide different perspectives and help to minimize bias.

4.    Interview panel composition as outlined in the OPSEU 596, Unit 1  and CUPE 233 collective agreements will be followed.

5.    The interview panel provides input into the evaluation of candidates through scoring of the answers; the Hiring Leader makes the final decision on choosing the successful candidate. The interview scores should be reflective of the successful candidate. The TACoE will maintain all documentation relating to the recruitment and selection process.

6.    The interview process will be conducted with inclusive hiring best practices to ensure questions and processes that minimize barriers, and will also provide reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities or other needs to ensure they can participate fully in the recruitment process. Examples of this include an interview package which includes ideal responses and a scoring rubric, flexible interview logistics and providing questions to candidates in advance of the interview for their preparation of answers. 

7.    When candidates are invited for an interview, they are made aware that they can request accommodation to fully participate in the interview process.

8.    As part of the University’s commitment to EDI values and to ensure we are hiring candidates who can help contribute to the university's EDI goals, the interview package will include EDI-related questions.The TACoE will conduct a debrief meeting with the interview panel to collect feedback/debrief notes and interview scores, and gain consensus on next steps.

9.    At the conclusion of the interview process, the Hiring Leader will identify the selected Candidate to the TACoE.

V.    Checking references

1.    The TACoE will develop the reference questions in collaboration with the Hiring Leader and conduct the references for internal and external candidates.  Reference questions can be selected from an existing template of questions or customized so they are specific to information presented in the interview or a combination of both. Referee answers are recorded in the reference document and form the supporting documentation included in the recruitment file.

2.    If the Hiring Leader chooses to conduct the references, the reference document and referee answers are sent to the TACoE for inclusion in the recruitment file.

3.    References must be completed and documented for external and internal candidates as required by the Hiring Leader or collective agreement. Two previous supervisors or managers are required as references. For internal candidates, if two external references were completed at the point of hire to TMU, only one internal reference (ideally from their current supervisor) will be required.

4.    Reference requirements as outlined in the OPSEU 596, Unit 1 and CUPE 233 collective agreement will be followed.

VI.    Making an offer

1.    Once a successful candidate has been selected, the TACoE will work with the Hiring Leader to determine the appropriate salary for a candidate, taking into account several factors including: collective agreement language (for OPSEU or CUPE 233 positions), salary range placement, internal equity, market competitiveness, and EDI considerations.  For situations that require a salary deviation, the salary deviation process will be followed.

2.    The TACoE will negotiate the starting salary with the selected Candidate after consultation with the Hiring Leader.  Job offers must follow the University-approved salary ranges for each employee group as set out in the validated job description, and be in accordance with any relevant collective agreement.

3.    Where an OPSEU candidate in an FTCE role is a successful candidate for a term position within the bargaining unit, the provisions in the collective agreement outlining a guaranteed return to home (GRTH) will be followed. The GRTH consideration will be documented in the offer letter.

4.    To support the professional development of the University’s internal employees, where an OPSEU or MAC candidate in an FTCE role is the successful candidate for a term MAC position, the FTCE employee will maintain their FTCE career status with the University and will be guaranteed a return to their home position at the conclusion of the Term appointment, provided their home position still exists. Appointments will ideally be at least 1 year in duration (to support backfilling of a role) however shorter assignments can be agreed to between the hiring leader and the releasing leader of the departing employee. Such a guarantee will not apply in the case of a renewal or extension of the employee's Term appointment. 

5.    Terms of the GRTH will be agreed to in advance of an offer, communicated in writing to the employee, and detailed in the offer letter. The role of leaders will be to  connect with the employee well in advance of the end of their term assignment to inform them a) if the term assignment will be extended - in the case of a hiring leader, or b) if they will not be supporting a GRTH after renewal or extension - in the case of a releasing leader.

6.    The TACoE will present the offer to the candidate and coordinate negotiations with the candidate and the Hiring Leader. For internal movements, negotiations will also include the releasing leader and timeframes for start dates.

7.    The TACoE will provide all offer contracts of employment to the successful Candidate.  Candidates hired into a Vacancy for a unionized position will receive offers in accordance with relevant collective agreements. 

8.    As set out in the Execution of Contracts Policy, the signing authority for offers of employment is the Hiring Leader. 

VII.    Declining the Unsuccessful Candidates After the Interview

1.    Once an offer has been accepted by a selected candidate, the TACoE will decline all other candidates who were unsuccessful in the interview process.

2.    If an unsuccessful candidate is internal to the same department as the vacancy, the Hiring Leader must follow up and provide constructive feedback on the candidate’s performance during the interview process. The TACoE will support the Hiring Leader with this discussion.

3.    The requirement for formal feedback and timelines as outlined in the OPSEU 596 Unit 1 and CUPE 233 collective agreement will be followed with discussion with the Hiring Leader, talent acquisition and staff recruitment.

VII.    Onboarding

• The TACoE will provide the necessary information to client services to facilitate the creation of the new hire's employee ID. The employee ID is provided to the new hire and Hiring Leader in order for the new hire to activate TMU system access and creation of the TMU email address.
• To support a positive experience, the Hiring Leader should plan a communication strategy to announce the new hire, keeping in mind that some candidates need to inform their current employer before an announcement is released.
• In order to prepare for the new hire’s arrival and integration into their new role and department, the Hiring Leader will facilitate an onboarding plan and schedule to guide the new hire's first few months in the role. This will help the new hire confirm their decision to join the University, engage and commit to the workplace and ultimately be more productive.