Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedures – Honorary Appointments (professional staff activities)

Parent Policy

Recruitment, Selection and Appointment

Preamble

The University occasionally offers honorary appointments (and an appropriate title) to persons who are not employed staff members of the University but who the University seeks to engage to contribute to the professional staff activities of the University. Honorary appointments are normally unpaid and may be made for persons of significant standing in the community and/or persons who contribute to the vision of Monash Directions 2025.

This procedure applies to the appointment of all honoraries to the University (excluding adjunct appointments).

Definitions

Dean or Divisional Director: means the dean of the faculty or director of the division (or equivalent) or his or her nominee in any case where the dean or director has formally nominated a person to act as his or her nominee for the purpose.

Faculty of Divisional Cluster: refers to a cluster of faculties and/or administrative divisions that is serviced by a particular HR Service Hub.

Head of unit: is head of an academic or organisational work unit, for example head of school, head of department or where applicable, a person acting as his or her nominee.

Honorary appointee: is a person of significant standing in the community or someone who is contributing to the strategic vision of the University and with whom the University seeks to establish a recognised relationship. Honorary appointees may include:

• professional practitioners of standing who can share their expertise and provide related professional services to students and staff of the University;
• persons able to provide auxiliary services of value to students and staff of the University such as chaplaincy or in association with, for example, art or music;
• qualified persons wishing to gain experience, often, but not always, as part of a requirement for professional certification and registration, and who, in return, contribute to the activities of students and staff; and
• in any other circumstances as recommended by the head of unit and referred to the Dean or Divisional Director for approval.

HR Business Partner: is a member of the Monash HR community who operates as a strategic partner responsible for providing a range of human resources services for an assigned Faculty or administrative Division. HR Business Partners are located within a HR Service Hub.

HR Service Hub: is the centre for human resources services and activities within a Faculty or Divisional Cluster.

Job Request: is the screen in Rex where all information relating to the specific position that is being requisitioned is recorded.

Rex: is the University's online recruitment system, which administers requests to advertise, selections and appointments and generates appointment contracts.

Unit: refers to an academic or organisational work unit within a Faculty and includes schools and departments.

Honorary appointments

Honorary appointments are typically offered for a period of one year but may be up to a maximum term of three years. The length of the appointment will depend on the nature of the contribution and the anticipated time commitment. 

Honorary appointees may be conferred a title that is appropriate to denote the honorary appointment and status.

No salary attaches to an honorary appointment. However, honorary appointees may be reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses with prior approval by the head of unit. These expenses will normally be agreed at the time of the honorary appointment being offered. Any additional expenses incurred later in the appointment term must be endorsed by the head of unit and approved by the Dean (for honorary appointees in a faculty) or the Executive Director, Monash HR (for honorary appointees in an administrative division).The associated financial liability shall be borne by the budget of the unit concerned.

The unit will arrange and fund:

• any required office accommodation (including secretarial support, where necessary);
• an identity card for the purposes of security access, identification and library access; and
• (where necessary) a car parking permit.

Honorary appointees are not covered by WorkCover provisions and are required to carry appropriate personal professional indemnity insurance or to specify how they are covered in the event of professional indemnity claims. The University's public risk indemnity insurance policies provide cover for the general aspects of honorary appointments.

Honorary appointments may be terminated by the:

• Dean where the appointment is in the Dean’s Faculty; or
• the Executive Director, Monash HR where the appointment is in an administrative division

when it is considered by the Dean or Executive Director, Monash HR (as applicable) to be in the University’s interests to do so.

Appointment process

Step 1: The head of unit proposes an honorary appointment

The head of unit will prepare a recommendation for an honorary appointment. The recommendation will:

• specify the principal accountabilities of the honorary position;
• contain details of the nature of the professional commitments and contribution expected to complement the work of the University; and
• outline any anticipated expenses associated with the position and the campus location/s of the incumbent.

The head of unit will then:

• arrange for the basic information regarding the requirements for the position to be included in the Job Request in Rex; and
• upload the recommendation for the honorary appointment to the Job Request.

Step 2: Monash HR completes all detailed information in Rex

The HR Business Partner will complete any outstanding detailed information in the Job Request in Rex and ensure that all necessary documentation is attached.

Step 3: The delegated authority approves the honorary appointment proposal

The completed Job Request will then be forwarded electronically via Rex to the relevant approvers. The relevant approvers are:

• for honorary appointments in the faculties, the Dean; and
• for honorary appointments not in a faculty, the Executive Director, Monash HR.

In determining whether to approve an honorary appointment, the approver must consider whether the association is in the best interests of the University.

Step 4: Monash HR issues the formal offer of appointment

The HR Business Partner will:

• complete the appointment information in Rex to generate the letter of offer;
• forward the letter of offer and associated documentation to the incumbent through Rex; and, where the offer of appointment is accepted;
• manage the appointment process through to induction and onboarding.

Responsibilities

Honorary appointee

The honorary appointee is responsible for ensuring that s/he has adequate professional indemnity insurance.

Head of unit

The head of unit is responsible for:

• preparing the recommendation for an honorary appointment;
• completing information relating to the honorary appointment in the Job Request in Rex;
• uploading the recommendation for an honorary appointment to Rex;
• endorsing the payment for any expenses incurred by the honorary appointee; and
• arranging all accommodation, security access and parking permits for the honorary appointee.

Dean

The Dean is responsible for:

• considering and approving appointment proposals in Rex for honorary appointments in the faculty; and
• approving the payment of any additional expenses incurred by the honorary appointee.

Executive Director, Monash HR

The Executive Director, Monash HR is responsible for:

• considering and approving appointment proposals in Rex for honorary appointments not in a faculty ; and
• approving the payment of any additional expenses incurred by the honorary appointee.

HR Business Partner

The HR Business Partner is responsible for:

• ensuring that all detailed information is completed in the Job Request in Rex and all required documentation is attached;
• ensuring that honorary appointments are approved within the requirements of this procedure; and
• generating the letters of appointment.

Related Procedures

• Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedure - Adjunct appointments
• Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedure - Recruitment of fixed-term and continuing staff