The University of Sheffield
Human Resources

University Guidelines and Criteria for the use of Fixed-Term Contracts

1. Introduction

1.1. The normal form of employment within the University will be through the provision of an open-ended contract. The University is committed to meeting its legal responsibilities to those staff who do not have an open ended contract, and are instead employed through Fixed-Term Contracts. The University will ensure that such contracts are only used where appropriate and where there is a legitimate reason for doing so.

1.2. The Fixed Term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2002 (`The Regulations´) came into force on 1 October 2002. The Regulations set out that fixed-term employees should not be treated less favourably than comparable permanent employees on the grounds they are fixed-term employees, unless this can be objectively justified.

1.3. The Regulations set out the following:

  1. the University is required to provide on request, a written statement, within 21 days, setting out the reasons for less favourable treatment if a member of staff believes that this may have occurred.
  2. all FTCs renewed or extended with more than 4 years service, from 1 July 2002, need to be justified, or transfer to an open-ended contract shall automatically take place.* The University is required under The Regulations to provide on request a written statement, within 21 days, either confirming that a FTC has become open-ended or if not, the reasons why it has not.
  3. the use of FTCs may only be justified in law where they are being used to achieve a legitimate business objective, where it is necessary to achieve that objective and where it is an appropriate way to achieve that objective.

(*The acquiring of 4 years service through successive use of FTCs shall not be regarded as an acceptable reason for the termination of employment.)

1.4. To comply with The Regulations the University has agreed a set of criteria to regulate the use of FTCs at all stages, which are based on sector-wide guidance. These guidelines and criteria have been developed in consultation with Campus Unions and were implemented with effect from 1 November 2004. With effect from that date:

  1. new FTCs may only be used where they can be objectively justified by one or more of the five criteria set out below at section 2.1.
  2. renewal and extension of existing FTCs may only take place where one or more of the criteria at Section 2.1 is fulfilled.
  3. a review of contractual status will take place at the first renewal point after a member of staff has accrued 4 years’ service through the use of successive fixed term contracts. The purpose of this review will be to consider whether the continuation of a fixed term contract remains justified or whether transfer to an open ended contract is appropriate, (this became a legal requirement from 1 July 2006), and a more rigorous set of objective criteria will be applied. This is covered in more detail at Section 3.

1.5. It is the aim of these guidelines to provide an effective route for departments to make recommendations on where it is appropriate to use FTCs and where it is possible and appropriate to move staff from FTCs onto open-ended contracts, through a transparent and well managed process.

1.6. Contract research staff should also refer to the Concordat to Provide a Framework for the Career Management of Contract Research Staff in Universities and Colleges, available in the 'see also' link.

2. Criteria for the use of FTCs at the University

2.1. The University has adopted the following five criteria (based upon those agreed by JNCHES in June 2002, as set out in the JNCHES Fixed Term and Casual Employment Guidance for HE Institutions, but adapted to ensure compliance with University working practices and procedures), to govern the appointment, extension and renewal of FTCs for staff with up to 4 years continuous service:

  1. the post requires specialist expertise or recent experience, or input from specialist practitioners, in the short-term that is not already available within the institution.
  2. to cover staff absence as appropriate, such as maternity and adoption leave, long-term sickness, sabbatical leave etc.
  3. the contract is to provide cover for secondments or career development opportunities.
  4. where the student or other business demand can be clearly demonstrated as particularly uncertain, over and above that of generally accepted fluctuations over time.
  5. where the post is funded by a temporary funding source* for which a date has been identified when, with significant certainty, it is believed that the funding will cease.

* Temporary funding for the purpose of applying these guidelines includes the continuation of funding from bodies such as the Research Councils, time-limited earmarked HEFCE funding (unless rolled into HEFCE Block Recurrent Grant), fellowships and endowments (except where renewal of the same post-holder is proposed). In order to qualify as temporary funding a confirmed end date must be contractually identified.

2.2. Where posts are funded by HEFCE Block Recurrent Grants or by overheads from Research Council funding the use of a FTC may not be justified on the basis of funding.

Initial Appointment to a FTC:

2.3. Where one or more of the criteria above is met then appointment to either an open ended or FTC can be recommended, subject to appropriate approval, through the job requisition process in e-Recruitment. Please contact your department recruiter who will process this on your behalf.

2.4. Where none of the five criteria can be met then appointment to an open-ended contract will generally be recommended. However, if a department feels that the use of a FTC can be justified on other grounds then advice should be sought from the Department of Human Resources, who will provide guidance on what form of contract is appropriate.

Renewal or Extension of a FTC:

2.5. Requests to extend or renew a FTC for a member of staff with less than 4 years´ continuous service will be judged against the five criteria set out above. It is recognised that during the employment period the circumstances which made the use of a FTC appropriate may change. Therefore the criteria used to justify a renewal or extension may be different from that used at the initial appointment. Similarly, the circumstances may change so that the continued use of a FTC becomes inappropriate or it becomes possible to make the post permanent, and a department may request at any time that an open ended contract be issued instead. Such requests should be submitted as a contract change request within e-Recruitment. Please contact your department recruiter who will process this on your behalf.

3. Four Year Review

3.1. All staff with four or more years´ continuous service on successive FTCs must be considered for transfer onto an open ended contract. It may still be possible for a FTC to be extended or renewed beyond four years, but the criteria against which such requests are judged are more tightly defined.

3.2. Requests to extend or renew an FTC where the member of staff has 4 or more years continuous service will only be approved where one or more of the following criteria are met:

  1. the post is externally funded with significant certainty that the funds will cease in the foreseeable future, and no other funds are available.
  2. there is significant certainty that the work being undertaken will cease in the foreseeable future, and no alternative similar work is likely to be available.
  3. a permanent member of staff will be returning to the post at a date in the foreseeable future.

4. Requests for a written statement under The Regulations

4.1. As set out above a member of staff may request a written statement under The Regulations in the following circumstances:

  1. to justify less favourable treatment;
  2. where 4 years’ service has been accrued, to confirm open-ended status or
  3. to justify the continuation of a FTC (with effect from 1 July 2006).

4.2. Requests under The Regulations should be made in writing, dated, and sent to the Head of Department, copied to the Department of Human Resources.

4.3. The Head of Department shall be responsible for providing the written statement and should consult immediately with the Department of Human Resources for assistance in preparing this response.

5. Guiding Principles of Application

5.1. When assessing appointment and renewals against the criteria, care should be exercised to avoid the application of the criteria in such a way to affect one gender or a particular group detrimentally, since this could amount to unlawful indirect discrimination.

5.2. All appointment procedures to FTCs should follow the same process as all other appointments, in terms of maintaining quality, standards and equality of opportunity.

5.3. Where transfer to an open-ended contract is recommended all other University procedures, including approval mechanisms and equality of opportunity, should be adhered to.

5.4. All issues of performance or quality that arise during the duration of a FTC should be addressed in the same way as for all other staff and in accordance with agreed University practice and procedures.

5.5. FTCs should not be used for performance management purposes or to achieve staffing flexibility that is not based upon the criteria set out above.

5.6. The guidance provided on the use of funding type as a basis for the use or continuation of FTCs should be closely adhered to.

6. Review

6.1. These guidelines and criteria have been agreed with the University Campus Unions. The Department of Human resources will be responsible for keeping these guidelines under constant review to ensure their continued legal compliance and effective implementation.

Content last updated: 14 January 2008