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Did you know that there are
currently thirty-four open positions, both academic and classified, to
be filled this spring? In addition to those, three more positions are
slotted to be filled next fiscal year and there are two more still
pending (and this does not include the recent list of 40 or so
retirements!). This means that many of you may be called upon to serve
on, or are currently serving on, one or more hiring committees. I am a
member of the EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) committee and currently
I am the EEO representative on three hiring committees. I have also
served on hiring committees not as the EEO Rep, but as a voting member
representing management. The purpose of this article is to remind
everybody of the importance of maintaining both professionalism and
confidentiality before, during and after the hiring process.
If you have
ever been part of a hiring committee, then you know that you are
required to sign a confidentiality statement. However, the culture
here at GCC is that of “one big family,” with the usual gossip grapevine
of an extended family. This tends to interfere with our legal
responsibilities when serving on a hiring committee. It is both a duty
and a privilege to work for a system that mandates shared governance for
all full-time academic hires. Although individual applicants (both
internal and external) may share their hopes for career moves with
anyone they please, the actual screening and interviewing process is
kept confidential. Maintaining this confidentiality is especially
difficult when people ask colleagues for letters of reference, thus
increasing the number of people who may know who is applying for what
position (especially internal candidates).
Both state and
federal laws require confidential hiring procedures; we put ourselves
and the college at risk of lawsuits when we violate this mandate.
If you are
asked to serve on a hiring committee, please take the commitment
seriously. Just as if you were serving on a jury, remember you are not
allowed to speak to anybody who is not on the committee about the
applicants, nor are you permitted to talk about the interview process,
or how applicants were ranked, or questions that were asked. It is
unfortunate that in many cases an internal candidate finds out he or she
is a finalist before our human resources department has a chance to
notify through the proper channels. When others who may not have been
selected for a final interview hear this information through the
grapevine, feelings are hurt; a more serious consequence is that
failing to maintain confidentiality could lead to expensive legal action
against the district. Although many of us have a long history here at
GCC and have made lasting friendships, we need to resist the temptation
to blend our friendships with our professional obligations. If you
suspect that you will have a conflict of interest, or you just can’t
keep your mouth shut, then you should remove yourself early on from the
committee.
In some cases,
a hiring committee is formed with not only representatives from the
various constituency groups on campus, but also may include community
members or professional experts. These folks are also required to sign
confidentiality agreements, but obviously we cannot control and monitor
what they discuss outside of our institution.
Despite all
the laws and rules, sharing our stories about sitting on hiring
committees and the dynamic that occurs between individuals is common.
This is a hard habit to break. In light of the fact that there will be
many more positions to be filled both by internal and external
candidates, we must all think about the repercussions of leaking
confidential information and the reputation of our institution. At the
May 2, faculty meeting, Dr. Davitt announced that approximately 50
people along with himself are retiring and that there will be many new
faces at GCC. We need to preserve the history of this college even as
we experience great change. Let us embrace this change and be proud of
who we are and our accomplishments. Let us feel good about the
professionalism with which we approach the hiring process. With the
potential of a large pool of applicants possibly coming from other
educational institutions, the message should be clear that the hiring
process at Glendale Community College is professional, confidential and
fair. &
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