Academic Policy  1406.10 

Faculty and Non-Classified Staff: Employment File and Office of Record

A permanent employment file for each tenured or tenure-track faculty member, each non-tenure-track faculty member (including part-time faculty), and each non-classified staff person employed in an academic unit or capacity is maintained from the time of employment until three years following the termination of that employment. The office of record for the maintenance of this file is either the office of the academic department of employment or the office of the dean of the school or college, depending upon college or school policy. The office of record is also responsible for entering and maintaining the currency of faculty data elements in institutional electronic files (such as BASIS and UAConnect). Changes in faculty member status will be entered each year by the Office of the Provost following the completion of the promotion and tenure review cycle and at other times as needed. Faculty and non-classified staff educational information must be entered into the PERS system in BASIS when employment begins. Policy regarding the location of the office of record should be formalized in each college or school. The employment file is the property of the University. No employment file should be substantially altered or destroyed without the permission of the dean of the college or school or library or his or her designee.

Additional personnel and employment files and records should be minimized. If files are maintained in both department and college offices, one must be designated as the office of record for each type of record maintained.

Contents for each file include all of the following records that apply. Starred (*) items must be kept for tenured and tenure-track faculty members and for other full-time and continuing faculty members. Other items are recommended. Records to be retained for part-time and visiting faculty should be sufficient to document qualifications, conditions of employment, assigned duties, and evaluation. Employees have the right to examine any or all records in their own file under conditions established for such review by the institution. Records may be in any appropriate medium (paper, film, electronic, etc.).

Listing of Dated File Contents

• Resume (current within 3 years) or comparable document with current listing of research and other accomplishments
• Application records: letter of application with resume, transcript, or other statement of credentials and qualifications and previous work history; letter of offer with statement of terms of employment, assigned duties, rank, and position (including statements regarding accelerated schedule for promotion or tenure review); letter of acceptance
• Employment records; letters or memoranda regarding conditions of employment (for example, workload assignments or assignment changes consistent with annual review results); change of status records (sufficient documentation to show date, conditions, and basis for changes of position, rank, salary, tenure status, leave-without-pay, off-campus duty, research assignments, suspension of the probationary period, etc.); leave, including annual and sick leave.
• Evaluation records; summaries of results from annual reviews; summaries of student evaluations and peer evaluations if not included in annual review summaries (held for five years); pre-tenure review summary results (kept until the tenure decision has been made); promotion and tenure review summaries, promotion and tenure decision records (supplied each year by Provost’s Office); and post tenure review summaries
• Conflict of interest and commitment records (completed forms for most recent 5 years) Correspondence file including all correspondence to and from the faculty member
• Off-Campus Duty Assignment outcome reports
• Grants and contracts summary information, cross-referenced to official files in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs
• Documentation of honors, awards, and any special recognitions, from UA or elsewhere
• Termination records: letter of termination or letter of resignation, letter of acceptance of resignation, retirement agreement, and emeritus resolution

Certain types of information about employees should not be collected or kept. State or federal non- discrimination, privacy or anti-blacklisting laws generally prohibit employers from collecting information about an employee’s:

1. • After hours behavior
   • Arrest records
   • Personal finances
   • Family background
   • Club memberships
   • Religious affiliations
   • Union memberships
   • and Political beliefs.

Other types of information may be collected and retained, but must be kept separate from an individual’s personnel file.

1. • Information that names and compares employees other than the employee of record may not be kept in an individual’s personnel file.
   • The following information is the responsibility of the Offices of Human Resources and Affirmative Action:
     • employee race
     • sex
     • ethnic background
     • age and disability information used to prepare federal and state nondiscrimination reports confidential employee medical records.
     • comparative annual review information

Note: Records regarding grievance procedures and promotion and tenure nomination dossiers are retained in the Office of the Provost for a minimum of three years following the action.

1/22/16
Reformatted for Web October 2, 2014
8/13/07