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Staff Hiring Pause

Last Updated: February 26, 2025 3:55:46 PM PST
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Effective February 19, 2025, UC San Diego is pausing hiring for core-funded positions. The pause will be in place until further notice, and may be amended if circumstances change. The campus will be notified of changes by email and on this page. FAQs on this page will also be updated in response to questions and as new information becomes available. 

Guidelines 

All staff recruitments on campus are subject to the hiring pause except for the following exemptions: 
  1. Non-academic Student Employees, temporary employees (including Temporary Employment Services and 3rd party agencies), and contract employees will be generally allowed.  
    • Note: these roles cannot be used as a long-term solution to avoid hiring career employees and consideration for impact to core funds (including core fund carry forward) is still required.  
    • For TES and contract employees, be prepared to answer the exception questions outlined below.  
  2. Health System hiring as they already have a rigorous review process. 
  3. Staff Promotion Program opportunities will still be allowed as long as no backfill is planned but will be captured using HireOnline in the Exception process tracking.  
 

Exceptions and Exception process 

For all new recruitments submitted after February 19, 2025:

  1. Hiring Department will document answers to the following questions prior to submitting a requisition:
    • Is the position core funded? If not, how is the position funded?
    • Is the position mission critical?
    • What is the consequence of not filling the position?
    • Can the work be reallocated through reorganization?
    • Can the position be temporarily backfilled with available talent from another area that has capacity?
  2. Department secures VC approval prior to submitting the requisition in HireOnline.
  3. Department submits the requisition including the above answers in the submission along with VC approval.

Coming soon: These will be tracked in HireOnline, our regular recruitment system.  

The HireOnline Process will involve:

  1. Hiring Department will address the following prompts in the system (expectation that these discussions have happened with leadership prior to submission and now documenting within our system of record): 
    • Is the position core funded? If not, how is the position funded? 
    • Is the position mission critical?  
    • What is the consequence of not filling the position? 
    • Can the work be reallocated through reorganization? 
    • Can the position be temporarily backfilled with available talent from another area that has capacity? 
  2. Hiring Department submits the requisition.
  3. VC authority approves or declines in HireOnline.

 

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Expand section FAQ's

What about grant-funded positions?
Expectation for Department and VC Authority to exercise the utmost scrutiny to consider if grant-funding under threat or potential threat of Federal action or other external factors that would implicate the Department utilizing core funds to cover employee costs. 
What about recruitments submitted but not completed before February 19, 2025?
HR will send a list of pending recruitments to each VC so they can determine if they want to cancel the recruitment or finish it depending on what stage of the process it is in with recommendations. 
  • If a recruitment continues (because it is at the point of no-return or potential reputational risk), but the candidate declines, the recruitment will end unless otherwise can meet the review of the exception process outlined. 
What about external consultants?
External consultants should not be hired to avoid the hiring pause for career employees.
  • Procurement will be on alert for these types of requests.
If you have questions, please reach out to hr@ucsd.edu.