Internal Professional Promotion Plan for Faculty & Staff

Management and the UUP bargaining unit at SUNY Plattsburgh share the responsibility of supporting and retaining a strong, creative and proactive workforce. The workforce of our college is the core element of future success and prosperity, and the parameters outlined in this document have been devised with the goal of acknowledging the value of the employees who devote their professional lives to SUNY Plattsburgh. We believe that the concept of internal career development is an integral ingredient in employee morale and institutional success and we seek to provide existing employees with the opportunity of first consideration for eligible, vacant positions as they become available. We understand that building and maintaining an excellent workforce is in part achieved by providing equal opportunity to all persons in employment consideration and recognize the need to balance affirmative action commitments with the concept of internal promotion.

“Internal” promotions to vacant positions are provided for in the Memorandum of Understanding Relating to a System of Promotion and Certain Salary Increases for Professional Employees, III.E.(1). Additionally, this document clarifies the process outlined in the earlier Plattsburgh State Plan for Internal Professional Promotion (August 16, 1988). For operational purposes and in addition to promotional opportunities, professional employees seeking lateral, non-promotional opportunities may also use this plan.

UUP and SUNY Plattsburgh management recognize that certain situations will justify professional promotions being made to vacant positions that bypass the process described below. For example, an assistant director or associate director may be the best person qualified to fill their department’s vacated director position, and in those instances, posting the position will not be necessary. These determinations will be made by management after weighing: (1) fairness to the professional employee by allowing an appropriate promotional opportunity, (2) campus affirmative action considerations, and (3) the greater needs of the campus.

Furthermore, Article XII, Title C, section 6 of the SUNY Policies of the Board of Trustees authorizes the chief administrative officer (i.e., college president) to make personnel decisions:

“Notwithstanding anything contained herein the chief administrative officer of a college may promote or recommend for promotion directly to the chancellor, or designee, any professional employee in the Professional Services Negotiating Unit at the chief administrative officer's college.”

Nothing contained in this document shall serve to modify or lessen the rights and privileges assigned to campus management, United University Professions, or employees under the terms and conditions provided in the SUNY Policies of the Board of Trustees and the UUP/SUNY agreement.

All UUP professional vacancies, including entry-level positions, will be covered by this plan.

At the discretion of the president, after consultation with the affirmative action officer, this process may also be used for some positions designated as management/confidential. However, this process will not be used when searching for the positions of dean, vice president or provost.

Specifically, it is the responsibility of the human resource services (HRS) office to ensure that the provisions of the UUP/NYS agreement are met regarding special consideration for retrenched university employees (Article 35).

Posting of Approved Professional Vacancies

At the outset of the process, notice of the vacancy will be posted internally for a minimum period of 10 calendar days. While internal postings will be made available to all campus employees, it is the responsibility of HRS to ensure, within reason, that internal postings are especially accessible to professional employees through electronic, hard copy, and/or other means, and that the vacancy is announced to professional employees as a promotional opportunity.
Applications from campus employees, other than professional employees, received during the internal posting period will not be accessible to reviewers until after decisions have been made on all applications received from professional employees during the internal posting period.
Applications from internal applicants received after the internal posting period will not be accessible to reviewers until after the internal review process is completed.
The campus may opt to post the vacancy simultaneously in external sources. However, any applications received from external applicants will not be accessible to reviewers until after the internal review process is completed.
Applicants for internal promotions under this process must have originally been selected to a position on the campus as the result of a competitive search process. Applications will not be accepted from employees whose original campus appointment was as the result of a search waiver.

Disposition of Internal Applications Received During the Internal Posting Period

References for internal applicants cannot be contacted without the applicants’ specific approval.
Applications from professional employees will be reviewed first to determine which applicants are qualified or unqualified for the position. If reviewers recommend a professional employee from this pool for promotion to the position, and that recommendation is approved, then this process ends with the professional employee being promoted.
If reviewers do not identify a professional employee for promotion to the position, then applications from other (state) campus employees may be reviewed to determine which applicants are qualified or unqualified for the position. If reviewers recommend a campus employee from this second pool for appointment to the position, and that recommendation is approved, then this process ends with the campus employee being appointed.
If reviewers do not identify an internal applicant for promotion or appointment to this position, then applications from external applicants will be made available for review. Internal applicants previously judged qualified for the position but not promoted or appointed during the internal review process will continue to be considered following steps outlined for (external) searches.
Internal applicants will be notified of the final disposition of their applications.

April 24, 2009