Appendix 4: Engagement & Management of Casual Workers
1. Introduction
1.1 The University will normally only offer work on an hourly paid casual worker basis where the level of work is insufficient to justify an employment contract (see Extended Workforce Policy).
1.2 In a casual worker arrangement, the University has full discretion whether to offer any work to the individual and individuals can equally choose whether or not to undertake the work offered. In legislation terms there is no mutuality of obligation and workers are not legally defined as ‘employees’. As such, they are not employed by the University on standard University conditions of employment or otherwise although they do qualify for certain legal rights. Workers have restricted access to corporate IT systems allowing web access to the HR Payroll system.
1.3 Such casual worker arrangements do not create any form of mutuality of commitment between the University and the individual. Hence if there is some form of predictable ongoing work over a given period it may be more appropriate and mutually beneficial to offer the role on an employment basis with some form of hours commitment even if there is no predictable work pattern (e.g. irregular or variable hours). This may be of a fixed term nature.
1.4 There is no policy on what precise amount of work might result in a role being offered on an employment basis as circumstances in units will vary. However, typically any level of work under 3 hours per week for a short period of time would be offered on a casual worker basis. Similarly, a one-off piece of work, for example 4 days of work (28 hours), which was unlikely to be repeated may also typically be offered on a casual worker basis. However, where a role has, for example, 4 hours a week over 7 weeks (also 28 hours) there is a stronger basis for offering the work on a part-time/fractional employment basis. Similarly, a fractional employment contract may be appropriate where there is a mutual commitment to a minimum number of hours over a given period e.g. 30 over an academic semester. Whereas ad-hoc work offered occasionally over a semester would be on a casual worker basis.
1.5 The University recognises that not all individuals who work for the University wish to be engaged on employment contracts. Where an offer of a contract of employment is declined, consideration will be given to engaging the individual as a casual worker if this arrangement is mutually considered to be an appropriate alternative. Advice must be obtained from P&OD in such situations.
1.6 Casual Worker activity is managed locally by departments and not within People & OD (P&OD).
1.7 Casual worker status is not intended to cover students on scholarships which include some developmental work experience, and who are not regarded as employees. Scholarship arrangements are covered by separate College specific guidance.
2. Engagement
2.1 Before offering work on a casual worker basis, hiring managers must seek advice from their local P&OD team to ensure that this form of arrangement is appropriate for the role being filled. As above, and as stated in section 2.3 of the policy “Where there is a sufficiently meaningful and predictable level of regular work over a given period the University will typically offer an employment contract which may be fixed term or permanent/open ended, full or part-time and will provide as much security of employment as possible.” Casual worker arrangements will normally only be used when these conditions are not met.
2.2 Engaging a Casual Worker
The process of engaging a casual worker on this basis is outlined in 2.2.1 to 2.2.3 below described below:
2.2.1 Prior to appointing a Casual worker, a post needs to be created on the HR System. Where there is no comparable post already on the system, a casual worker duties template should be completed prior to any recruitment.
2.2.2 Once the Casual Worker Duties Template has been completed, it should be returned to the local P&OD Team who will assess the template to:
- ensure the activity and the circumstances justify the use of a casual worker arrangement
- establish the rate of pay
- confirm whether any checks under the ‘Protection of Vulnerable Groups’ scheme are required.
2.2.3 Having reviewed the duties template, a member of the P&OD team will then contact the School/Service to notify them of the outcome. Where the work is confirmed as appropriate to offer on this basis, the role will be allocated a post profile and post number.
2.3 Rates of Pay for Casual Workers
2.3.1 Workers are normally placed on the bottom salary point of the grade for the job when taking up that role. However, salary placement may be higher where it is so justified, subject to advice from the local P&OD Team.
2.3.2 For the avoidance of doubt, the hourly rate applicable to any particular salary point is calculated as follows:-
Full-time salary/ 1825 (nominal 35 per week x 52.143 weeks/year) = hourly rate
2.3.3 There may be roles e.g. for which a full job description may not be appropriate. In this case, a list of duties should be compiled by the relevant School and paid accordingly after agreement with the local P&OD team on the grading in advance of the assignment.
2.3.4 The University salary scales and associated hourly rates are available here - Hourly rates.
2.4 Recruitment and Registration of Casual Workers
2.4.1 The recruitment process for casual workers should be sufficient to attract the best candidates available and ensure that it supports equality of opportunity and values diversity. In particular it should enable all those in ‘target markets’ to have an equal opportunity to apply, while ensuring that the effort involved in the process is proportionate to the nature of the jobs on offer.
2.4.2 The University normally advertises externally, but it is acceptable to advertise internally-only in certain circumstances including where the post is short-term and/or where it can be reasonably demonstrated that internal advertising will generate a sufficient pool of appropriate candidates.
2.4 Registration
2.4.1 Once the worker(s) has been identified, they should be asked to meet with the School/US administrator in order that the registration process can commence. During the first stage of registration the administrator will:
- Carry out the necessary pre-employment/working permission checks to confirm eligibility to work in the UK (see further information below), and copy and certify the documentation;
- Consider if the worker will be involved in regulated work. (In accordance with the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007, individuals who are to carry out ‘regulated work’ (as defined by the Act) must undertake a PVG Scheme record check in order to confirm that they are not barred from working with children and/or protected adults. The individual will be notified accordingly where work has been identified as ‘regulated’. Further guidance can be found in the (Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme Policy.)
- Enter the required basic personal details of the worker through People XD back office i.e. name, date of birth, national insurance number, personal email address and next of kin details;
- Attach the worker to the appropriate post profile and upload the certified working permission documentation (e.g. passport, birth certificate etc.).
- All workers must be issued with a letter of engagement prior to commencing work. The Casual Worker Template Engagement Letter should provide as much clarity as possible regarding the work arrangements and likely volume of work to be offered and must be uploaded to People XD along with the documents above.
2.4.2 On completion of the first stage of the registration process, an email will be sent to the worker’s personal email address which will provide them with their University of Glasgow ID (GUID) therefore enabling them to access the HR Payroll System. The worker will then be required to log into the HR Payroll System. The worker will then be required to log into the system where they will complete the registration process by providing their bank details, address, and diversity information. Please note that payment for work undertaken cannot be made until the worker is fully registered. (NB. No payments will be approved for payroll until the person is registered and the appropriate registration documents uploaded).
2.5 Immigration and Asylum Checks
2.5.1 All workers must provide the relevant School/Service with documentation which proves that they have the right to work within the UK prior to undertaking any work for the University.
2.5.2 Details can be found in the Home Office Right to Work Checklist and the University’s Right to Work Checks Guidance.
2.5.3 Broader information on visas and immigration (including visa types) can be found on the University’s visa and immigration information page.
2.5.4 It is essential that managers do not offer individuals more hours than they are legally permitted to work. For example, some workers may have more than one assignment so the manager must check with the individual that their total working hours do not exceed 20 across all roles. It should also be noted that if there was a level of work on a regular basis at this level then a casual worker arrangement is probably not appropriate, and advice should be sought from P&OD to consider other employment options.
2.5.5 Whilst it is the responsibility of the University and local Management to ensure that someone does not work more hours than permitted by their visa, we also wish to encourage the individual to share in some of that responsibility. To this end all those engaged on an hourly basis who are on such a visa should be asked to sign a declaration stating that they understand the restrictions and that they should raise any concerns accordingly if offered more work. This will assist in addressing the challenge presented by some holding multiple appointments.
If in any doubt regarding an individual’s right to work and the number of hours permitted please check with a member of the P&OD UKVI Hub.
3. Management (inc Payment Administration)
3.1 The activity of casual workers is managed by the relevant local area and not People & OD.
3.2 The overarching principles of the Extended Workforce Policy apply and payment for hours worked are processed via timesheets which must be appropriately authorised at a local level. An additional payment in lieu of statutory holiday entitlement will automatically be paid and will appear as a separate figure on pay-slips for hours processed. This additional payment in respect of holiday pay is calculated as 12.0319% of the individual's normal hourly rate. Holiday entitlement will be calculated based on hours worked and will be pro-rated on the basis of a full time workers statutory holiday entitlement (currently 28 days). No action is required by local Administrators as this element is added automatically by payroll.
3.3 For the avoidance of doubt, such workers have no additional entitlement in respect of public holidays.
4. Ending Engagement
4.1 Casual workers do not have an employment relationship with the University and hence there is no requirement on either the individual or the University to serve notice to end the service agreement. These are governed by the terms of the letter of engagement and the relevant local Administrator should monitor and end accordingly, ensuring that workers no longer being used are ended in the HR System. A data cleansing exercise should be carried out on a quarterly basis. The record for any individual not having received payment for an assignment for six months should typically be ended in the University's system.