Procedure Manuals
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The DER shall maintain a written record of examination, which shall show an evaluation of the applicant's qualifications, as based on a review of an application form and on the results of an interview between the applicant and an appropriate member of the DER's staff.

No records of the results of such examination, and hence no register information is to be filed with the University System office. Selection records for Extra Help candidates MUST NOT be incorporated into the official registers of any place of employment and are not transferable from one place of employment to another.

Employees on Extra Help Appointments may be terminated with a Termination Notice. An employee on an Extra Help Appointment may wish to resign, in which case the Resignation form shall be used.

A review of Extra Help Appointments for compliance with the 900 hour limitation, any corresponding extension, and/or any other applicable criteria for such appointment shall be made at least every three months by the DER.

An Extra Help appointee, upon reaching 900 hours of accumulated employment, must be terminated and cannot resume employment in any Extra Help Appointment until 30 calendar days have elapsed unless an extension is approved by the Executive Director of the University System. Consideration of an Extra Help extension request and any approved Extra Help extension shall follow the guidelines and application process outlined below.

General Guidelines for Extra Help Extensions

1. In all instances, formal University System office approval is required before any extension can be implemented. Extensions of the 900 hour limitation must be approved by the Executive Director of the University System and will be granted, under very limited circumstances, in instances demonstrating a critical need or unusual/rare circumstances.
2. An extension will not alter the nonstatus nature of the Extra Help Appointment.
3. Extensions will only be granted for a specified time in increments of one year or less beyond the original 900 hour limitation. Reapplication and approval by the Executive Director of the University System is required at the expiration of the extension period. If the critical need continues to exist, each extension request will be carefully reviewed on a case by case basis and consecutive extension requests will generally require extraordinary or compelling justification. Long term extensions or consecutive term extensions may reflect a permanent staffing need and a recommendation to staff accordingly.
4. An extension request will be considered for an individual employee/position or group of employees/positions.
5. Justification for an Extra Help extension may include:
   1. Continuing disability, pregnancy leave, military leave, or other approved leave of absence where the employer expects the return of the employee holding the original appointment. The extension may not exceed the period of the approved leave.
   2. Intermittent need of highly skilled technical or professional positions/employees that have been trained by the employer. Consideration will be given to recruitment difficulty based on verifiable job market demand components. Examples of positions that may fall within this guideline are medical personnel, information technology staff, and law enforcement personnel.
   3. A project that requires completion within a short timeframe, such as one year or less, and there is no additional funding available.
   4. Other situations resulting in a critical need or unusual and rare circumstances.
6. Extensions due to workload peaks will generally not be granted unless it has a direct effect on the health and safety of students, patients, faculty/staff or the general public who are invited to sponsored events.
7. In all instances, consideration will be given to factors such as a defined financial restriction, business necessity, operational needs, reorganizational needs, length of requested exemption, health/safety issues, and the evaluation of other available employment options in lieu of the extension request.
8. If extensions are not approved, the Extra Help employee/position must be terminated in accordance with the 900 hour limitation described above.
9. For audit purposes, the employer will need to maintain the names and exact number of hours worked/paid for each employee/position subject to an Extra Help extension.

Application Guidelines for Submitting an Extra Help Extension Request

1. All required information, as listed below, must be submitted in order for the request to be considered. Form 2.5a, Request for Extra Help Extension may be utilized to submit these extension requests. All of the required exemption request elements are contained in this form.
2. Request for an extension must be submitted in a timely manner for uninterrupted continuation of coverage for the current employee(s) and workload. In most instances, extension requests should usually be submitted 30 days before the original 900 hour limitation has been reached. In some instances, consideration will be given to a request submitted in advance for a specified group of employees or positions, if based on a clearly defined anticipated need for a definite period of time of one year or less.
3. The following information is required when submitting an extension request:
   1. Certification signed by the DER that the work to be performed is the same work performed as of the time of the initial Extra Help Appointment and no other reasonable means exists to meet the employment and operational needs.
   2. Employee(s)’s name, if request is for an individual or a small group of individuals. If requesting an extension for a large group, please submit the estimated number of employees and positions to which the exemption will apply.
   3. A description of duties that the Extra Help employee(s) will be expected to perform, the classification(s) designation of the work to be performed, and the assigned department(s) or work area(s).
   4. Planned start and end dates of extension, or number of extended hours (above 900) needed.
   5. Confirm the number of employees on the re-employment register in the classification to be utilized in the extension.
   6. Verification that appropriate employee groups have been notified, along with some indication of their reaction to such a request.
   7. Detailed explanation of need and justification for extension.
   8. If applicable, any previous history and implications regarding similar extensions.
   9. List of alternative employment or operational actions considered.
   10. An explanation of the consequences if the extension request is denied.