Introduction | Applicable to | Not applicable to | General conditions of service | Related links

Introduction

Together with the specific details in your letter of appointment, which takes precedence, this policy overview provides important aspects of the employment contract for staff on PASS conditions of service. It must be read in conjunction with UCTs Employee relations policy for all staff. Links are provided wherever a more in-depth policy exists on an aspect of service.

Applicable to

All PASS staff in pay class 1 to 12 and pay class 13, peromnes group 4 and 5.

Not applicable to

Academic staff from assistant lecturer to professor. See: General conditions of service for academic staff.

General conditions of service

1. Values and principles
   1. As an employee of the University you are required to be familiar with, and heed UCT's Vision 2030 and the UCT Statement of Values.
2. Induction and requirements prior to taking up appointment
   1. The University occasionally requires new staff in certain positions to undergo a medical examination. The purpose of the examination is to confirm the fitness of the appointee to perform the duties of the position.
   2. In the case of citizens of countries other than South Africa who do not have residency status, the appointment is offered subject to the staff member fulfilling any legal requirements in South Africa. 
   3. PASS staff must go through an induction programme prepared by the line manager, as appropriate for the position. An induction checklist is available to facilitate this process.
3.  Retirement funding and risk cover   
   1. All permanent and T2 staff are required to become a member of the University's Retirement Fund (UCTRF). An allocation is made to this from your cost of employment (COE).
   2.  As a member you will receive UCTRF provident retirement benefits as well as death-in-service, funeral and disability cover. The UCTRF allows members to elect their contribution rate, multiple of death cover and a choice of 3 investment portfolios to direct the investment of the monthly retirement funding contributions paid by the University on behalf of the staff member. Further information about the UCTRF and these choices is available on the UCTRF website.
4. Medical Aid 
   1. Staff on permanent conditions of service are required to become members of the University's medical aid scheme unless they are a spouse/partner dependant on a registered South African medical aid scheme. Foreign medical insurance is not acceptable.
   2. Staff on T2 conditions of service are required to become members of the University's medical aid scheme unless they provide proof of membership on own or partner/spouse's registered South African medical aid scheme. Foreign medical insurance is not acceptable. 
   3. Staff on T1 conditions of service do not qualify to belong to UCT's medical aid scheme.
   4. A choice of levels and types of cover within the scheme is allowed. The medical aid contribution is a direct deduction from net pay and attracts tax relief as allowed by SARS. 
      
      See: Medical Aid policy.

5. Tuition fees

   1. Staff who undertake study at UCT, or whose dependant partner or dependent children do so, may be eligible for a staff rate on tuition fees. See: Staff tuition rate policy.

6. Hours of work 

   1. Working hours are determined by the requirements of each particular section or department, but the following limits have been laid down:

   2. Library staff are required to work over weekends and/or evenings based on operational needs.

   3. A staff member is required to adhere to the hours of work laid down for the department or section to which he or she is appointed. Notification of such hours will be given, on appointment, by the line manager. 

   4. If a staff member is late, he or she is required to inform the line manager of his or her lateness and on arrival to report immediately to the Line Manager, as time lost through lateness will not be paid for unless there is an acceptable explanation. If the staff member is unexpectedly unable to come to work, he/she must send a message to the Supervisor or Manager as soon as possible, explaining the absence and giving the date of return. Failure to comply with this provision may result in disciplinary action being taken against the staff member. 

   5. Certain categories of staff who are required to work additional time outside their normal hours of work may be paid overtime. See: Overtime policy. 

   6. Staff who work less than their prescribed number of working hours without authorisation, or who are absent without leave are subject to reductions in remuneration and disciplinary action may be taken.

7.    Leave and arranged absences 

   1. Minimum working hours (excluding lunch and tea breaks): 37.5 hours per week, or 7.5 hours per day, for full-time staff.

   2. Part-time staff are advised of their hours of work in their letters of appointment.

   3. The administrative function within the University is officially open for business from 08h30 to 16h30, Mondays to Fridays. Line managers must arrange with staff in their areas for coverage of business hours as operationally required.

   4. By agreement, staff may arrange to commence work between 07h30 and 09h00, and to take a break of either 30 or 60 minutes between 12h30 and 13h30. Staff are permitted to finish work between 15h30 and 17h30.

   5. Once agreed, such arrangements will be the standard for the employee or group of employees. The line manager must agree to any amendment of the standard hours, and occasional variations should first be agreed upon between the supervisor and staff member. 

   6. The university does not close at any time, except for public holidays. 

   7. Staff who need or wish to be absent from their work stations during the agreed hours of work must seek prior approval for such absence. 

   8. Annual leave for most categories of PASS staff is 26 days per year, which may be taken at any time subject to line manager approval. 

   9. Service for part of a year entitles you to pro-rata annual leave. 

   10. A portion of annual leave may be accumulated and carried over. 

   11. Several other types of leave may be approved as necessary. Sick leave, family responsibility leave, parental leave (previously maternity and paternity), study & examination and special leave are each described in more detail in the University's Leave policy. 

   12. Staff members who wish to be absent from work for reasons not connected with their duties must seek prior approval for the absence. They are required to use their annual leave for such purposes. 

   13. Leave is paid out on termination, under conditions specified in the Leave policy.

8. Religious holidays 

   1. Staff members wishing to take time off to observe a religious holiday that is not a public holiday are required to use annual leave. 

   2. Muslim staff members wishing to take time off to attend midday prayer meetings on Fridays are required to make up the time lost, by arrangement with their Head of Department.

9. Equipment and clothing

   1. Staff members are responsible for University property issued to them. 

   2. Written or oral instructions about the operation of equipment or machinery must be strictly observed. Staff are not to operate machinery, motors, power switches, pipes or valves, unless specifically authorised to do so. 

   3. Where overalls and other protective clothing are provided by the University, staff are required to wear them when working. Staff working in dangerous conditions are required to wear the protective clothing provided (such as helmet or safety goggles). Failure to comply with this provision may result in disciplinary action being taken against the staff member. 

   4. If provided with such apparel, the cost will be covered by UCT. However, if lost or damaged, excluding normal wear and tear, the University is entitled to recover the cost of such article from your earnings. 

   5. Clothing shall remain your property and you are required to clean it in your own time. 

10. Occupational health and safety  

    1. UCT is committed to promoting safety at work. As a member of staff you are expected to promote occupational safety and refrain from unsafe practices. When the need arises, you may be required by your line manager, in terms of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, to undertake specific duties relating to health and safety at the workplace. 
       See: UCT's Health and safety policy and our Occupational health and safety page. 

    2. If a staff member is injured while on duty, he or she is required to report the accident immediately to his or her head of department or supervisor. 
       See: Occupational Health resources.

11. Private work

    1. Private work undertaken by UCT staff is subject to the provisions of the Private work policy 

12. Discipline and grievances  

    1. In addition to the conditions of service outlined in this policy, an employee is required to maintain certain standards of conduct and performance. Failure to do so may result in a disciplinary process being initiated. See: UCT Disciplinary Policy.   

    2. Grievance procedures exist for any serious matters, other than conditions of service and salary, which a staff member wishes to bring to the attention of management. See: PASS grievance procedures 

13. Performance Management

    1. The Development Dialogue (DD) is the agreed process for performance contracting, management and development at UCT for PASS staff in pay classes 6 to 12. See: Development Dialogue  

14. Promotion

    1. PASS staff are appointed to particular positions and rewarded for excellent service through the performance management system described in section 13. It is only possible to move to a higher position through termination (end of contract or resignation) and reappointment to another position. 

    2. Scientific and Technical Officers have access to an additional promotion process, similar to that of academics, to support the academic endeavour, career development and retention strategies particular to this category of staff. See: Promotion policy for scientific and technical officers. 

15. ​​​​Research by PASS staff 

    1. Although research is generally not part of the position description of PASS staff, certain members of this group may be required to conduct research as part of their position requirements with clear deliverables. This is subject to the provisions of the Policy on research work conducted by PASS staff. 

16. ​​​​Copyrights and licence 

    1. Intellectual property: This appointment is subject to the regulations prescribed in UCT's Intellectual property policy which deals with, amongst other issues, patents and inventions and with the rules and procedures pertaining to intellectual property and copyright ownership.  

17. Resignation

    1. Periods of notice of intention to terminate the contract of employment, unless otherwise specified in the contract, will be:  

    2. The University may dismiss a staff member without notice in the case of conduct on the staff member's part which disrupts the contract of employment and justifies summary dismissal. 

       1. (a) two months for staff in pay classes 8 and 9
       2. (b) one month for staff in pay classes 1 to 7
       3. (c) three months for staff in pay classes 10 and above

18. ​​Retirement

    1. Retirement and post-retirement appointments are subject to the provisions of the Retirement policy.

19. Confidentiality and security

    1. A staff member may not disclose or communicate to any unauthorised person any information relating to the work entrusted to him or her or relating to the work of any other staff member or UCT student. Neither may information obtained in the course of employment at the University and relating to any staff member, student or University activity be communicated.

    2. A staff member may not use information obtained in the course of employment at the University for personal gain or for the benefit of any other person or organisation without written authority to do so.

    3. It is a dismissible offence for any staff member to communicate information as defined in point 19.1 above to the South African Police Service or to any other state or private security agency without written authority

20. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Conflict of interest

    1. ​​​​​​​In order to ensure compliance with Section 34(4) of the Higher Education Act, all staff are required to declare any business or relationships that may raise a conflict of interest, or possibility of conflict of interest with the University. See: Conflict of interest policy.

21. ​Firearms and dangerous weapons

    1. ​​The carrying of firearms and dangerous weapons is prohibited on University property.

22. Smoking

    1. Smoking is banned in all University buildings on all campuses.​​​​​​​

23. Gifts
    occasional personal hospitality such as tickets to sporting or theatrical events - provided that the cost of transport and accommodation is borne by the recipient in the case of events more than a "bus ride away from the University".
    occasional entertainment such as lunches, cocktail parties and dinners
    advertising matter of little value on which the name of the advertiser is indelibly imprinted, such as pens, diaries or calendars.

    1. The acceptance by staff of gifts and/or hospitality from applicants, relatives of applicants, or suppliers of goods or services is, in general, forbidden. It could lead to disciplinary action, summary dismissal and the termination of dealings with the supplier concerned.

    2. This rule does not apply to acceptance of:

    3. Favours that fall outside these limits must be declined. This applies particularly to offers of materials or services from suppliers free of charge or at artificially low prices, weekends at holiday resorts or payment of hotel or entertainment bills and free aircraft tickets while travelling locally or abroad.

    4. All PASS staff are also bound by the University's finance policies on Gift vouchers and Staff functions and gifts.

Related links

• Employee relations policy
• Remuneration policy

Page last updated: 3 November 2022