Employee Handbook
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Scroll to: At Will | Employee Requirements | Medical Information | Separate Employers | Classification of Employees | Nepotism
Employment Basics
At Will Employment
Employment with SIBCR is “at will.” “At will” means that either SIBCR or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice. No one has the authority to enter into any agreement for employment for a specified period of time, or to make any other representations or agreement inconsistent with this policy, unless it is in writing and signed by the Executive Director.
Employee Requirements
A prerequisite for employment at SIBCR is a completed employment packet. This packet needs to be completed prior to or on the first day of employment. This will include, but is not limited to:
- Optional Application for Federal Employment – OF 612 (This is not optional for SIBCR employees.);
- SF-85 "Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions”;
- IRS Form W-4, a copy of which will be sent to the State of Washington to comply with its new hire reporting requirements; and
- Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9. The Form I-9 is to be signed by the supervising SIBCR member or authorized SIBCR official after review of the employee’s identification.
All SIBCR employees must secure status as a Without Compensation (WOC) appointee to work at the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System (VAPSHCS). This requires specific paperwork, including the Optional Application for Employment – OF 612 and the SF-85 "Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions.” As part of the WOC appointee requirements and as an employee at a federal facility, new hires will also be required to complete a background check and have their fingerprints taken.
WOC status awards the employees of SIBCR some of the benefits and responsibilities of employment at VAPSHCS. Please contact SIBCR if there is a question as to the applicability of any requirement or policy at VAPSHCS that is not covered in this handbook.
If the SIBCR employee is to engage in direct patient care activities, the securing of WOC status requires verification of professional credentials for nurses and the obtaining of clinical privileges from VAPSHCS for physicians, physician assistants and ARNPs. No patient contact is allowed until license verification is complete or clinical privileges are granted by VAPSHCS. Equivalent permission and/or clinical privileging must be obtained from other institutions if such work is to be performed at these sites (i.e., the University of Washington Medical Center, Harborview Medical Center, etc.).
All personnel at VAPSHCS who work with research patients or with patient-identifiable research data must complete training in Human Subjects and Good Clinical Practices, as well as other VA-mandated training. Personnel must also have a completed Scope of Work form on file with the VAPSHCS Research and Development (R&D) office. The R&D office will also verify their credentials. All training, the Scope of Work form and verification of credentials must be completed before any work is conducted with patients or patient identifiable research data.
A new SIBCR employee should submit for Without Compensation (WOC) status with VAPSHCS by providing the necessary completed documents to the SIBCR office. The documents required can be obtained from the SIBCR office or at www.sibcr.org.
When SIBCR employees work at VAPSHCS and/or at other affiliated institutions, they are required to follow the host institution’s policies relating to personal conduct, safety and the conduct of research activities.
Medical Examination/Information
Certain medical information and/or examinations are required by VAPSHCS for SIBCR employees working within VAPSHCS. A TB titer is required at the beginning of employment and annually thereafter; if an employee has a positive result, a chest x-ray may be required. A completed Immunization Worksheet for each employee is required to be submitted to Occupational Health at VAPSHCS.
Separate Employers
SIBCR employees are not University of Washington (UW) or Federal (VAPSHCS) employees, but often work side-by-side with employees of UW and VAPSHCS. Work policies of these employers differ slightly from SIBCR policies. All persons who are paid wages and salary directly from SIBCR are employees of SIBCR. If questions arise because of differences in treatment of employees, employees should refer their questions to SIBCR Human Resources. SIBCR employment policies will apply to SIBCR employees, not the policies of VAPSHCS or UW.
Classifications of Employees
SIBCR has several classifications for employees.
- Full-Time Employee: An employee who is hired to work at least 30 hours per week and whose appointment is expected to exceed 1,000 hours per year. Full-time employees with an appointment expected to continue for a year are eligible for all SIBCR benefits.
- Part-Time Employee: An employee who is hired to work less than 30 hours per week and whose appointment is expected to exceed 1,000 hours per year. Part-time employees are eligible for some SIBCR benefits (see Benefits section beginning on page 25).
- Casual Employee: An employee who is hired to work on an intermittent or as-needed basis. These employees are not eligible for any SIBCR benefits.
- Temporary Employee: An employee who is hired with the expectation that he or she will be needed for a specified period of time of less than 12 months and less than 1000 hours. Temporary employees are not eligible for most SIBCR benefits, but may be eligible for leave accrual (see Benefits section beginning on page 25).
- Exempt Employee: An employee who is paid a fixed salary on a monthly basis and who otherwise meets the criteria for exclusion under the applicable federal and state wage and hour laws, including but not limited to, executive, administrative, or professional employees. An exempt employee is not eligible to receive overtime pay.
- Nonexempt Employee: An hourly employee who is eligible for overtime pay for all hours actually worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek in accordance with applicable federal and state wage and hour laws.
Many SIBCR employees are nonexempt. Each employee’s status under applicable federal and state wage and hour laws will be determined upon hiring. Employees should see SIBCR for any questions regarding their status.
Employment of Relatives (Nepotism)
Employment of relatives is permitted, except in circumstances where an appointment places related people in supervisory or subordinate roles, or in a situation where influence could be exerted, directly or indirectly, on future decisions concerning the status of the employee’s employment, promotion, or compensation. For this policy, “Relative” is defined to include an employee’s spouse, parents, children, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins, grandchildren, grandparents, and any person with whom the employee lives in a relationship substantially equivalent to marriage.
If two employees become related or begin dating or become involved in an intimate relationship, and their continued employment might or does create a conflict of interest or the appearance of favoritism, one of the employees may be transferred to another open position. If such a position is not available, one of the two may be asked to resign or may be required to seek employment outside SIBCR.