These definitions apply to these terms as they are used in these procedures.

Acceptable Performance Record

• The current or latest performance evaluation must have an overall rating of no less than Successful or Exceptional.
• There are no current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track.

Bumping Rights (Hourly-paid staff only)

The displacement of one staff member by another who is affected by a reduction-in-force action and has greater seniority and is serving the next higher-level direct line title in the unit affected by the reduction-in-force action.

• The affected staff member must have an evaluation of at least Successful or Exceptional on his or her most recent performance evaluation and no current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track.
• Once the affected staff member has been informed of his or her opportunity for bumping, he or she has 3 working days (Monday to Friday) to decide whether to accept or not.
• If the affected staff member does not accept the bumping opportunity he or she will move forward to redeployment.

Calendar Day

Any day between Monday through Sunday.

Comparable Pay

Pay that is no more than a 10 percent reduction in current base salary.

Comparable Position

A position is comparable if there is no more than a 10 percent reduction in current base salary. This is the primary consideration, which will determine whether a position is comparable. Secondary consideration which will not define comparability, but will be factors in placing a staff member include job level and job family. The affected staff member will be matched with the closest vacant position to the eliminated position for which the staff member meets minimum qualifications. Part-time staff have opportunities for available part-time positions.

Continuous Service Date

A staff member's most recent date of hire, used to determine certain benefits, including Paid Time Off accrual rates, seniority status and eligibility for certain programs including retirement. Staff who are rehired will not be given credit for prior service for purposes of continuous service date, paid time off (as PTO, vacation, or sick leave), or for other benefits unless they have left Duke within the last 12 months because of a layoff or research staff on active payroll.

Entity

• For purposes of reassignment and/or bumping rights, the executive vice president will determine entity distinctions in conjunction with the vice president for Human Resources or his or her designee.
• If priority interview has been deemed appropriate, a department refusing to accept a qualified redeployed or layoff candidate may have the vacant position canceled for 12 months. Questions regarding qualifications will be referred to the vice president for Human Resources or his or her designee.

Exempt Status

A job status (management, administrative or professional) in which a Duke staff member is paid a fixed monthly salary and is exempt from coverage under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Any hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek do not result in additional overtime pay or compensatory time off. This term is used interchangeably with “monthly” and “salaried.”

Guidelines

Guidelines clarify and provide detail about procedures.

Layoff

A loss of employment due to economic and/or operational factors requiring workforce reduction. A layoff can be either temporary (loss of employment is expected to be of short duration, i.e., 30 calendar days or less) or permanent (greater than 30 days).

Layoff Status

Preference in referrals for one (1) year following date of termination.

Departments will not be permitted to hire individuals other than qualified referred priority staff unless they can explain in writing why they are not qualified.

• If the hiring manager does not select the applicant he or she must provide written justification to the assistant vice president of Recruitment or her or his designee.
• The assistant vice president of Recruitment will review and discuss the justification with the hiring manager and his or her department head (and the entity HR director if applicable) and make a determination to accept or deny the justification.

Non-exempt Status

A job status in which pay is calculated based on the hours worked, and the staff member is entitled to overtime pay. This term is used interchangeably with “biweekly” and “hourly.”

Placement

A staff member who is affected by a reduction-in-force who declines a comparable position (or an interview for a comparable position) within one year of notification will be considered to have resigned.

Priority Interview

• A qualified referral is matched with a vacant comparable position for the purpose of a selection interview with the expectation that he or she will be hired.

Priority Selection Consideration

• A qualified referral is matched with a vacant comparable position for the purpose of a selection interview.
• If the hiring manager does not select the applicant, he or she must provide written justification to the assistant vice president of Recruitment or her or his designee.
• The assistant vice president of Recruitment will review and discuss the justification with the hiring manager and his or her department head (and the entity HR director if applicable) and make a determination to accept or deny the justification.

Qualified Referral

• Meets the minimum qualifications for the vacant position.
• Successful (university) or Fully Achieves (health system) on current/most recent performance evaluation.
• No current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track.

Reassignment

(Hourly-Paid and Monthly-salaried)

When a comparable position is vacant within the entity affected by the reduction-in-force, an affected staff member who is qualified for the vacancy will be offered the opportunity for reassignment based on the following criteria: (1) current/latest performance evaluation is a Successful (university) or Fully Achieves (health system) and no current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track; (2) meets minimum qualifications for the position; (3) is the most senior staff member qualified for the position; and (4) currently works in the same entity.

• Once the affected staff member has been informed of his/her opportunity for reassignment, he or she has 3 consecutive workdays (Monday to Friday) to decide whether or not to accept.
• If the affected staff member declines the reassignment offer he or she will have resigned (at the end of that workday) without eligibility for severance, recall or priority interview/selection consideration status.
• If the affected staff member accepts the reassignment offer, he or she will meet with the new supervisor to identify a transition plan.

Recall

A staff member who left Duke due to layoff status can be recalled to a funded position (of equal or lower classification for which he or she is qualified) that becomes available within a year in the department from which he or she was laid off.

Redeployment

• Placing a staff member into another comparable position at Duke within the 60-day notification period.
• Redeployment is not an opportunity for promotion or a guarantee of shift, working hours or additional premium pay.

Reduction-in-force

The elimination of a position and related work longer than 30 calendar days in duration, and, in some cases, even a permanent phasing out of positions.

Severance Pay

Provides some financial assistance to regular full-time or abbreviated schedule (working at least 20 hours per week) staff who are not paid 100 percent from grant funds and who are affected by a permanent layoff.

• This compensation is predicated on several factors (see Rights of Affected Staff).
• Severance pay will not be provided in a lump sum payment

60-Day Notification Period

The period of time (60 consecutive calendar days) given to a staff member who has been notified that his or her position will be eliminated for more than 30 days.

• During the 60 days, the staff member will either continue working in his or her position on regular payroll, be relieved of job duties to identify and pursue other employment opportunities or a combination of the above.
• The 60-day period is provided to partner with the supervisor and the transition coordinator to identify and pursue other job opportunities.

Training/ Retraining

Focused skill development that can be reasonably provided during the 60-day notification period to qualify a staff member for redeployment.

Unit

For purposes of reassignment and/or bumping rights, the entity senior leader will determine unit distinctions in conjunction with the vice president for Human Resources or his or her designee.

Work Day