Department Request for Waiver of Open Recruitment
UC Davis is committed to fair access, equal opportunity and competitive recruitment as core institutional values.
Conducting open recruitments is considered best practice and reflects our dedication to inclusive excellence, transparency and merit-based hiring. Open recruitments provide all qualified individuals an equitable opportunity to compete for career and contract positions, including those in the PSS, MSP and SMG classifications.
Waivers of open recruitment should be rare and reserved for exceptional circumstances only. They limit the number of individuals who can compete for employment opportunities and should only be pursued when there is a business necessity.
Department Responsibilities:
To request a waiver of recruitment, departments must:
- Ensure an accurate and up-to-date job description is prepared.
- Identify the specific business necessity requiring a waiver of the recruitment process.
- Contact your department’s Talent Acquisition Partner to initiate the waiver request. You will be required to complete the waiver of recruitment form, which includes providing details about the position and a justification for the waiver based on one of the four allowable criteria below.
Requirements
Waiver of recruitment requests must meet one of the following criteria, as defined by policy:
- Previous recruitment attempts did not result in identifying a qualified candidate pool, and/or recruitment difficulties in attracting candidates with the required skills, knowledge and abilities unique to the position have been documented.
- Unanticipated business necessities require filling the position on an immediate basis and the time needed to conduct a search would have a negative impact on meeting critical operational needs of the department or would violate a formal contractual obligation of the university.
- There are special appointment conditions, such as an organizational entity or program moving to the location along with specified current employees.
- Conducting a competitive recruitment would delay filling a necessary position and endanger health and safety.
Review Process:
Waiver of recruitment requests are carefully evaluated to ensure they meet policy requirements and align with UC Davis’ equal employment opportunity obligations. Each request is reviewed by:
- UC Davis Chief Compliance Officer (or designee)
- UC Davis Chief Human Resources Officer (or designee)
- Manager, Strategic Talent Services (or designee)