Policy information | Introduction and purpose | Applicable to | Not applicable to | Principles | Approvals Process | Referenced Policies | Roles and Responsibilities | Waiver of Advertisement Infographic

Policy information

Revision Number		Revision Date	To be reviewed in 2026
Approved by	Council (11 March 2023)	Implementation Date	1 July 2023
Policy owner	HR Director: Organisational Development and Effectiveness
Reviewed by	HRMAG, ERMC, Executive, Leadership Lekgotla, Staff Bodies, URC, UHRC, Council
Enquiries	HR Client Services. See: HR contact list.

1. Introduction and purpose of the Waiver of Advertisement Policy (WEF 1 July 2023)

Appointments are normally made after advertisement (either public advertisement or internal advertisement). Exceptions are permitted and this policy provides for the exceptions.

Waiver of Advertisement appointments may be permitted where:

• The incumbent is being considered for a contract appointment exceeding 2 year or conversion to a permanent appointment; and/or
• The field has been recently canvassed during a recruitment process concluded no more than 3 months prior, and a suitably qualified candidate has been identified; and/or
• A person has been identified with scarce skills for a specialised post; and/or
• External funding is linked to the appointment of a specific candidate (limited to named investigator(s) and/or specialist with expertise in a particular field in research-funded projects); and/or
• An equity candidate has been identified for an accelerated transformation or 3-year Employment Equity post
• The Vice-Chancellor has motivated for a strategic appointment subject to provision 2.6 of this policy
  1. Applicable to

This policy is applicable to PASS and academic staff in the following employment categories:

1. New permanent appointments.
2. New contract appointments of more than 2 years.
3. Change in appointment from contract to permanent.
   2. Not applicable to

1. Contracts of 2 years or less.
2. Individuals in internships or learnerships and such positions whose relationship with UCT is governed by a specific programme related to job exposure.

2. Principles

Cases allowed for waiver of advertisement appointments:

2. 1. The candidate has a proven track record in a contract post and is now to be considered for a permanent position (the permanent position must be the same or very similar to the current contract position).
   2. The candidate must have undergone a sufficiently rigorous recruitment and selection process in line with existing recruitment policy and guidelines on the first appointment to the position, and if not, a detailed motivation must be provided.
   3. A selection committee identified a suitably qualified candidate/s in a recent process that concluded within the last three months, where:
      1. 1. 1. the selection committee at that stage made no appointment, or
            2. the selection committee at that stage found more than one appointable candidate and is now able to make an offer to another suitably qualified candidate or candidates for the same or very similar post.
   4. The faculty/department has identified a candidate with scarce skills for a highly specialised post, where it believes that the advertising process would not yield a better candidate.
   5. The faculty/department has received external funding for a project and the award is linked to the appointment of a specific candidate.
   6. The Vice-Chancellor has motivated for a strategic appointment and the motivation has been supported by the Standing Review Committee appointed for this purpose. (The Standing Review Committee comprises the Executive Director Human Resources, a nominee of the Employment Equity Forum (EEF) and three of the five senior non-decanal professors who are not Deputy Vice-Chancellors).
   7. The funding for a 3-year Employment Equity post has been granted. The funding of posts will be administered by a small committee chaired by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Transformation, Student Affairs and Social Responsiveness reporting to the University Human Resources Committee.
3.  Approvals process
   1. A motivation is prepared and checked with the Faculty / Cluster Transformation Committee

The motivation must be prepared and approved for the selection process to commence. The approval paths differ for academic and PASS positions according to the detail provided in Table 1.

Table 1: Motivation for a waiver of advertisement appointment

Motivation	Academic	PASS
Prepared by	Line Manager in consultation with the Head of Department	Line Manager in consultation with the Head of Section/Department
Consultation	Transformation Committee	Transformation Committee
Departmental/Faculty approval	Dean	Dean or Executive Director
Procedural Approval	Executive Director: HR	Executive Director: HR or Chief Operating Officer in the case of HR
Approval: Associate Professor	Deputy Vice-Chancellor
Approval: Professor/PC13 (4) and (5)	Vice-Chancellor	Vice-Chancellor

The Head of Department/Line Manager must seek approval from the Dean/Executive Director (see Table 1), with a motivation detailing compliance with one of the eligibility categories in clause 1, prior to consulting the Chair of the relevant Transformation Committee (TC). The Employment Equity representation provisions are to be satisfied for the selection committee.

If the proposed appointment would represent an employment equity appointment, and additional employment equity funding is to be applied for, the Head of Department/Line Manager (see Table 1) must apply to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor:  Transformation, Student Affairs and Social Responsiveness alerting them of the possibility of an application for funding for the position.

1. 2. The motivation is approved at executive level

The following procedure applies when motivating for a waiver of advertisement. All documentation is to be accompanied by an HR203 submission.

The Line Manager (see Table 1) must submit a written motivation to the delegated authorities (as per Table 1), stating the eligibility category (in clause 1) of the proposed candidate and the reasons for not advertising, with a position description (if applicable), the full curriculum vitae of the proposed candidate, the names and contact details of three referees, a report on the consultation with the TC and where applicable, a report on (possible) employment equity funding.

If the motivation is approved by the applicable delegated authority (see Table 1), they will authorise a selection committee to convene.

If the motivation is not approved, or the selection committee declines to support the proposed appointment, the post will be advertised.

If the motivation is made by the Vice-Chancellor for a strategic reason and the Standing Review Committee has supported the motivation, in the case of academic appointments the Chair: Senate Review Panel must ensure consultation with the relevant faculty/departmental TC and, where applicable, provide a report on (possible) employment equity funding before authorising the appointment of a selection committee to convene to consider the waiver of advertisement.

1. 3. A selection committee makes a final recommendation

The selection committee meets to consider the motivation, check referees reports (if applicable) and interview the candidate (unless there are cogent reasons not to interview, which will require a full motivation to the selection committee Chair). In some instances, the selection committee may have a preliminary meeting to consider the motivation (prior to interview) on guidance by the Chair.

If the selection committee does not approve the proposed appointment the motivation must be referred back to the proposer (Head of Department, Line Manager, or Vice-Chancellor), with a recommendation on the way forward.

The selection committee recommendation, with the motivation (including all supporting documentation) and appointment is sent to the delegated approver according to the HR Delegated Authorities as indicated in Table 2 below.

Table 2: Final approval of the selection committee recommendation

Recommendation	Academic	PASS
Departmental recommendation	HoD	Line Manager
Approval	Dean	Dean/Executive Director
Procedural approval	Executive Director: HR	Executive Director: HR or Chief Operating Officer in the case of HR
Also approved by the Vice-Chancellor if it is ...	Professorial	Payclass 13, peromnes 4 or 5

4. Referenced policies

This policy should be read in conjunction with the following UCT policies and procedures:

• Policy on fixed-term employment contracts
• Recruitment policies
• Employment equity policy

5. Roles and responsibilities

Read in conjunction with HR delegated authorities.

Role	Responsibilities
Human Resources (HR) Department	Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP) advises  Line Manager on completion of relevant documentation, checks previous appointments on SAP and submits request to the Executive Director or Dean. HR supports the appointment process aligned with the recruitment and selection procedures. Executive Director:Human Resources (ED:HR) or nominee ensures procedural compliance in line with the HR delegated authorities,
Line Manager	Completes relevant documentation with assistance from the HR Business Partner and writes motivation for appointment without advertisement. Consults with faculty/department Transformation Committee. Submits motivation to HR Business Partner for Dean /ED approval.
Dean or Executive Director	Consults with the relevant faculty/departmental Transformation Committee for strategic appointments requested by the Vice-Chancellor (VC). Approves the motivation. Authorises the selection committee to convene. Approves the selection committee recommendation
Selection committee	Considers the motivation, checks referees, interviews candidate and makes final recommendation. In the case of a non-approval, recommends the way forward.
Faculty or Cluster Transformation Committee (TC)	Advises the Line Manager on employment equity funding. Supports the motivation for candidature.
Vice-Chancellor (VC)	Motivates for strategic appointments. Approves selection committee recommendation for professorial appointments and pay class 13, peromnes 4 or 5.

Waiver of Advertisement Infographic

Page last updated: 8 July 2023