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People Excellence

HR Glossary of Terms


The purpose of this page is to provide definitions for some of the commonly used Human Resources terms. If you have any questions about the terms listed here, please send us an e-mail or call us at 458-4648.

Administrative and Professional Employee (A&P) -

Serves at the pleasure of the Vice President and is considered an at-will employee.

    • Has primary responsibility for the management of multiple departments or operating units with the primary focus on strategic and tactical business planning and development.

    OR

  • Has responsibility for the management and operation of a department or unit within a department and performs one or more of the following: development and administration of policies, programs and internal procedures; development and maintenance of fiscal systems and operations; strategic and tactical business planning and development; facilities planning; recruitment, supervision, and development of professional and support staff.

    OR

  • Performs duties solely or predominantly of a recognized profession and/or State-licensed profession requiring an advanced degree such as lawyers, physicians, veterinarians, scientists and engineers.

    OR

  • Has primary responsibility for the creation, development, implementation and maintenance of programs relating to various significant institutional endeavors.

    OR

  • Holds a position such as that of professional librarian, which is excluded by law from the Classified Service.

Audited Position - A new position that is an ADDITION to headcount.

Benefits Eligible Employee - An employee who is hired to work at least 20 hours per week for four and one-half (4.5) months or longer and who has competitively bid on the position for which they were hired.

Classified Employee - An employee appointed to a position in the classified service under one of the official titles in the Classified Pay Plan. The first 6 months of employment for a classified employee at UTSA is probationary.

CMO - President's Campus Management and Operations composed of: UTSA President, Vice Presidents & Provost

Exempt Employee - An employee who, because of his/her position duties, is exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) - The federal legislation that established overtime wage requirements and defined specific exempt occupations.

Full-Time Employment - Employment of an individual for 40 hours per week.

HOP - Handbook of Operating Procedures - University Regulations

Incumbent - The individual who is currently appointed (employed) in a position.

Job Audit (Job Analysis) - A systematic procedure for gathering information about the current or proposed duties and requirements of a position in order to determine the most appropriate classification (job title).

Job Classification - A group of positions sufficiently alike in respect to their duties and responsibilities to justify a common name and similar treatment in selection, compensation, and other employment processes.

Job Description - A summary of the duties attributed to a job classification and the knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform satisfactorily in any position which is similarly classified.

Lateral Transfer - The movement of an employee from his/her current position to a different position within the University with no change in title.

Non-Exempt Employee - An employee who, because of his/her position duties, is not exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Non-exempt employees must receive compensatory time off or overtime pay at a rate of time and one-half for any time worked in excess of 40 hours in a work week.

Non-Regular Employee - An employee whose appointment(s) is:

  • for less than 4 1/2 months regardless of the hours appointed to work per week or
  • for 4 1/2 months or longer and hours appointed to work is 19 hours or less per week

Part-Time Employment - Employment of an individual for less than 40 hours per week.

Pay Plan - The document that outlines pay ranges for all classified job titles.

Position - A group of duties and responsibilities that require the full or part-time employment of one person.

Position Description - A detailed summary of the duties attributed to an individual position. Provides specific information about a position that is not available in a generic job description.

Posting - The process of making job vacancies known to interested job applicants.

Promotion - A change in which an employee moves from his/her current position to another position requiring more extensive education and/or experience and paying a higher salary. Generally, such a change requires that the higher-level position be formally posted and that the employee apply and be chosen as the most qualified candidate.

Reclassification - A change in the classification (job title) of a position resulting from a job audit (job analysis).

Regular Employee - An employee who is appointed for at least twenty hours per week for four and one-half months or more. Regular employees are eligible for UT group insurance benefits.

Replacement Position - A replacement position is a vacated position (one that had been previously filled).

State service credit is earned for the actual days, months, and years of service with the University or other state of Texas agencies or higher education institutions, as long as employment at the other state agency or institution is not concurrent with employment at the University. Each full month an employee is on active payroll counts as one (1) month of state service credit, regardless of the number of hours worked in a month. Only the actual days worked during partial months at the beginning and ending of employment count as state service credit. Each thirty (30) days of employment converts into one (1) month of state service credit. Employees do not accrue state service credit while on leave without pay. Employees called to active duty during a national emergency by a reserve branch of the U.S. Armed Forces of the United States accrue state service credit. State service credit is used to determine vacation accrual rates, longevity pay and hazardous duty pay; it is not used to determine retirement benefits. [Rev. 12-6-07]

Student Employee - An employee appointed into a position requiring student status as a condition of employment. Student employees must be enrolled in a recognized educational institution on a half-time or greater basis during the current or next scheduled semester.

Transfer - The movement of an employee from his/her current position to a different position within the University.

Vacancy - A budgeted position in which no employee is currently appointed.

September 2018