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Human Resources Manual - 120 - Post-Secondary Student Employment Program

Contents

Introduction

  1. The Government provides summer student employment opportunities to eligible summer students.
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Application

  1. These guidelines and procedures apply to all Departments, Boards and Agencies except the Workers’ Compensation Board and the NWT Power Corporation.
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Definitions

  1. CasualWORK website is the Government of the Northwest Territories website that accepts applications for summer student employment.
  2. Corporate Human Resources (CHR) is the Corporate Human Resources Division of the Department of Human Resources.
  3. Management and Recruitment Services is the Management and Recruitment Services Division of the Department of Human Resources.
  4. Northern Post-Secondary Student is a student who normally resides in the Northwest Territories and has completed a semester of full-time study at a post-secondary institution within the four months prior to being employed under the program, or who has been accepted to attend a post-secondary institution on a full time basis at the start of the fall or winter semester, whichever is closer to his/her entry into the program.
  5. Returning Student is a post-secondary student who has successfully completed his/her post-secondary year, who worked for the Department, Board or Agency in the previous summer, had a positive employment history with that Department, Board or Agency and who the Department, Board or Agency wishes to rehire.
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Guidelines

  1. There are two types of post-secondary student jobs:
    1. Category A:  a job that fulfills a specific departmental need but is not necessarily related to the student’s field of study (i.e., replacement work for someone on summer holidays or completion of a specific project like taking inventory).
    2. Category B:  a job related to the student’s field of study where the emphasis of the job is on providing relevant work experience.  Many of these jobs are eligible for a subsidy under the Progressive Experience Program (see Section 121a) or Relevant Experience Program (see Section 121b).
  2. For employment in Category A jobs, post-secondary students are given a higher priority than non-students of the same affirmative action priority between April 15th and August 31st.
  3. Only post-secondary students are considered for Category B jobs.
  4. The Affirmative Action Policy applies to the selection of post-secondary student employees (see the Human Resources website for a copy of the Affirmative Action Policy).
  5. Priority for summer student employment is as follows:
    1. northern post-secondary students who have completed a semester of full-time studies at a post-secondary institution within the four months prior to being employed under the program;
    2. northern post-secondary students who have been accepted to attend full-time post-secondary studies at the start of the fall or winter semester; and
    3. where there are no post-secondary students registered for employment in a community, managers hiring for student jobs in that community may consider local high school students.
  6. Northern post-secondary students MUST register on the CasualWORK website in order to be considered for summer student employment.
  7. Post-secondary students are hired as casual employees and are subject to the same terms and conditions as other casual employees.

  8. Where possible, offers of summer employment are made to post-secondary students by mid-April to allow them to concentrate fully on their final examinations without the worry of securing summer employment.

  9. A general orientation to Government and workshops on topics relevant to students (i.e., resume writing, preparing for interviews) will be offered over the summer to students employed with the Government.  The Department of Human Resources (DHR) will arrange these sessions.

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Procedures

  1. Throughout November and December, DHR will use a variety of advertising methods to contact Northwest Territories post-secondary students to advise them to register on the CasualWORK website for summer student employment.
  2. Students are encouraged to apply on the CasualWORK website for summer employment as early as possible, preferably in January of each year.
  3. In November and December, information packages will be provided to Management and Recruitment Services to help them promote the Summer Student Employment, Progressive Experience and Relevant Experience Programs to departments.  This will include a department specific list outlining students hired and positions filled during the previous summer.
  4. In January and early February, Management and Recruitment Services will use the list to review prior year’s student hiring with managers and establish a preliminary list of post-secondary student positions available for the coming summer.  The list will also specify the duties to be performed and the experience and/or educational background required for each position.
  5. Management and Recruitment Services will also use the list to help departments identify positions/students that may be eligible for funding subsidies under the Progressive Experience or Relevant Experience Programs.
  6. Management and Recruitment Services will work with departments to determine which positions should be posted on the GNWT Employment Opportunities listing on the Internet, and proceed to have them posted.
  7. Managers with access to the Department of Human Resources’ Intranet site will be able to search for summer students on the CasualWORK search.
  8. Managers who need to look for students will contact their human resource representative in order to be given “reader access” to the CasualWORK search link.
  9. Managers working in departments without access to the DHR Intranet contact their human resource representative who will search the database to find them a selection of suitable students.
  10. Management and Recruitment Services will discuss the possible students with managers, and arrange interviews and conduct reference checks as may be required.
  11. Between February and August, managers can continue to identify opportunities for student employment.  As additional jobs are identified, Management and Recruitment Services will work with mangers to fill their positions using the process outlined above.
  12. Management and Recruitment Services will process the casual staffing form for each student hired.
  13. When students are hired, Management and Recruitment Services:
    1. advises the Casual Employment Coordinator of the hire by email, including:
      1. student name;
      2. affirmative action status;
      3. start and end dates;
      4. department; and
      5. community;
    2. ensures the “student” field is checked off in the Personal Data section on PeopleSoft; and
    3. marks the student as hired in the CasualWORK database.
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Last Updated: February 2007