Employment categories

• Categories of employment
• Modes of employment
• Modes of employment applicable to each category of employment
• Contacts for further information

Categories of employment available at the University

Continuing Employment

Continuing employment is employment entered into for an indefinite period subject to the termination, change and redundancy provisions of the USQ Certified Agreement 2005-2008.

Fixed Term Employment

A fixed term (non-continuing) employee may be appointed for a specified term or ascertainable period subject to the termination, change and redundancy provisions of the Certified Agreement.  These appointments will not normally be renewed and the employee should not have any expectation of continuity of employment. 

A terminating fixed term employee with over twelve months continuous service who has had more than one contract for a specific task or project, or research, may be entitled to a following severance payment.

Specific Task or Project means a definable work activity with a start date and which is expected to be completed within an anticipated timeframe. Without limiting the generality of that circumstance, a specific task or project may include a period of employment provided for from identifiable funding external to the employer, not being funding that is part of an operating grant from government or funding comprised of payments of fees made by, or on behalf of, students.

Research means work activity by an employee engaged on primarily research functions for a contract period not exceeding five years. 

Casual Employment

A casual employee is engaged and paid on an hourly basis, with a loading to compensate for benefits (such as sick and recreation leave) for which a casual employee is not eligible.  A casual employee is appointed to work an irregular pattern of hours on an intermittent or irregular basis, up to the full-time equivalent.

Modes of employment available at the University

Full-time

Full-time employment means in the case of a general employee an engagement of a minimum of 36 hours per week. In the case of an academic employee a full-time work load is determined in consultation with the employee's Category 3 Delegate or above.

Fractional

Fractional employment means an employee may be engaged for a fraction of a full-time employment. Entitlements are calculated on a proportional basis determined by the fractional engagement.

Annualised Hours

Annualised hours employees are engaged for an agreed number of hours within a twelve month period. Annualised hours employees will be paid fortnightly at an amount calculated by averaging the total number of nominated hours (including the recreation leave component) to a fortnightly salary. 

Sessional

Employees in the Residential Colleges and Printery may be employed on a sessional basis.  Sessional employees are engaged for a minimum of 32 weeks per year and for a minimum of 18 hours per week normally to accommodate workflow ‘peaks or troughs'.  Sessional employees receive a 10% loading on the equivalent hourly rate for full-time employees for hours worked in the fortnight.  A sessional employee will receive the entitlements of a full-time employee on a proportional basis determined by the hours worked within the year.

Term

Term employees are engaged on a continuing basis for a minimum of 26 weeks in a calendar year and works for a minimum of 15 hours per week.  Term employees are advised at the beginning of each calendar year as to which weeks they are required to work.  Term employees are paid fortnightly at a proportional rate to a full-time employee for the hours worked in the fortnight.

48/52 Weeks Per Year

A full-time employee can apply to take up to eight weeks annual leave in a year and receive 48 weeks salary, which would be payable over the full 52 weeks (ie the employee may work 44 weeks of a negotiated 12 month period).   An employee participating in the 48/52 scheme has effectively had 4 weeks leave without pay approved but rather than lose the value of the 4 weeks salary in one period, the employee has obtained approval to spread the salary impact of 4 weeks leave without pay over 26 pay periods.  

Modes of employment applicable to each category of employment

It is important to note that specific categories of employment have specific modes of employment which apply only to them.  The diagram below shows that continuing employment can utilise all the modes of employment, whereas fixed term employment can only utilise full time, factional, annualised hours and 48/52 weeks per year modes of employment.

Further information