Pre-boarding and Onboarding New Hires

Operational Standard/Purpose

The Human Resources Department manages all pre-boarding and onboarding activities for new hires. All pre-boarding documentation (including official transcripts, education verification, background and reference checks, and drug screen results) must be submitted to Human Resources before new employees prior to the hire date. Failure to provide these documents may result in the employee’s immediate release and/or delayed hire. All new employee hires are approved by ICC’s Board of Trustees with few exceptions (for example, student employees and Adjunct Faculty).

Scope/Applicability

All new hires are required to participate in Pre-boarding and Onboarding.

Some rehires may be required to participate in Onboarding depending on the length of time between employment dates.

Some temporary positions such as interim positions, internal hires, Motorcycle Rider Safety Program (MRSP) positions, or student positions may not require the participation of an orientation.

Definitions

Onboarding: Employment-related activities that assist in orienting new employees to the new position and ICC as the employer (also known as orientation).

Pre-boarding: Employment-related activities that occur between the acceptance of an employment offer and the hire date.

Procedures

Refer to the Employment Planning and Requisitions Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for requests to fill vacant positions.

Refer to the Vacant Position Posting and Recruitment Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for recruiting, interviewing, offering, and hiring candidates for a vacant position.

Refer to the Performance Management Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for evaluating performance during the orientation period.

Pre-boarding Procedure(s)

1. Notifying New Hire of Pre-Boarding / Onboarding: Upon verbal acceptance of the offer of employment, Human Resources will move the candidate to Pre-board/Onboard in NEOGOV. The Pre-boarding phase includes the following:
   1. Assignment of onboarding tasks for employment based on the position.
   2. A Pre-boarding email from Human Resources to introduce the new hire to the process.
   3. An automated email from NEOGOV to the new employee to activate a user account. The email comes from donotreply@neogov.com and provides a link for online access to applicable onboarding paperwork and other tasks that must be completed for employment at ICC.
   4. An automated email from ESR Check to the new employee to activate a user account. The email comes from system@esrcheck.com and provides a link for online access to the pre-employment testing that must be completed for employment at ICC.
2. Pre-employment Testing: To ensure the College maintains a safe and productive work environment, Human Resources conducts pre-employment background checks and drug screens on all new employees for hire, except student employees. Depending upon the requirements of the position, the College may require the new hire to undergo a physical and/or lift test. Refer to the Smoke Free / Substance Free Workplace Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) for additional information.
   
   The new hire must submit an online background check release form. Instructions are provided in the ESR Check system. A background check authorization must be completed prior to the hire date. Background checks will include, at a minimum, the following:
   • A criminal record check covering a minimum of seven (7) years, although a criminal conviction does not automatically bar an applicant from employment;
   • A sex offender search; and
   • Academic credentials check for all professional, faculty and academic positions.
   • Additional checks such as a driving record may be made for particular positions if appropriate and job related.
     
     The new hire must complete a pre-employment drug screen. Instructions are provided in the ESR Check system. A drug screen must be completed prior to the hire date. If the position requires a physical, that must be scheduled prior to the hire date. Instructions are provided in the NEOGOV system if the position requires a physical.
     
     The new hire must have completed the required testing prior to first day of employment. Human Resources must generally receive satisfactory results from all required background checks and screens within seven (7) days from the date of hire to continue employment.
3. I-9 Verification: To comply with federal regulations of the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), all employees are required to complete an Employment Eligibility Verification form (I-9 form). This law applies to all individuals hired, including part-time/temporary employees and students. All employees must complete Section 1 of the I-9 form on or before the hire date (first day of employment at ICC). All employees must provide appropriate I-9 documentation on or before the hire date, (lists of Acceptable Documents are found on the I-9 form). Employees who fail to complete the I-9 on or before their hire, date cannot begin work at ICC. In addition, ICC complies with the Immigration and Nationality Act and does not discriminate against individuals based on their citizenship or immigration status, or based on their national origin, in the Form I-9 process.
   1. I-9 Retention: ICC must retain a valid I-9 for all its active employees. Once an employee has terminated, I-9 forms are retained for three (3) years from the hire date or one (1) year beyond the employee’s termination date, whichever date is later.
   2. I-9 Re-verification: Federal regulations require ICC to update and/or re-verify the I-9 form when one of the following occurs:
      1. An employee is terminated and later re-hired by the College. The original I-9 is valid only when the employee is re-hired within three years of the original hire date. Otherwise, a new I-9 form and E-Verify report must be completed. A new E-Verify report must be completed for all re-hires.
      2. An employee's work authorization is about to expire and a new or extended status has been approved, or the employee’s status has changed to another non-immigrant or to immigrant status. No new E-Verify report is required for work authorization re-verifications.
      3. Re-verifications for terminated employees who are re-hired within 3 years of the original start date should re-verify their I-9 with Human Resources.

Onboarding Procedure(s)

1. E-Verify: E-Verify is a web-based program administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), USCIS Verification Division, and the Social Security Administration that supplements the current I-9 employment eligibility verification process. The program determines whether the information provided by the new hire matches government records, and whether the new hire is authorized to work in the United States.
   1. The E-Verify website requires Human Resources to submit the following information about the new hire/re-hire:
      1. Whether the employee attests to be a citizen or national of the United States; a noncitizen national; a lawful Permanent Resident (with Alien #); or an alien authorized to work (with Alien # or Admission #).
      2. Employee Information required for the form I-9 includes first and last name, middle initial, maiden name, social security number, date of birth, passport number, alien number, visa number, I-94 number and passport expiration date (if applicable).
   2. Human Resources is required to submit an initial verification query on the E-Verify website within three (3) business days of the employee’s hire date. If the query is not submitted within that timeframe, Human Resources must note the reason for the delay and attach it to the form I-9.
   3. After the query is submitted, DHS will respond in one of the following ways:
      1. Employment Authorized: This response indicates employment eligibility is verified and the case may be resolved.
      2. SSA Tentative Non-confirmation (SSA TNC): This response indicates the employee’s Social Security information could not be verified. The employee must be notified of the TNC response and referred to SSA if he or she contests the SSA TNC. See Section 3.2.6 for how to refer the new hire to SSA to resolve a TNC.
      3. DHS Verification in Process: This response indicates the non-citizen’s information provided to SSA matches the information contained in SSA records, but did not match DHS’ records. The case is then automatically referred to DHS for further verification. Human Resources does not need to take any action at this point. DHS will respond to most of these cases within 24 hours, although some responses may take up to three (3) Federal government workdays. Human Resources should check the system daily for a response.
   4. Human Resources writes the Case Verification Number (CVN) from the website on the employee’s I-9 form, and proceed accordingly.
2. Employment Based Visa Hires: Human Resources completes the I-9 form and E-Verify report for all new hires authorized to work in the U.S. with an H1B, O, TN, E-3, I20, I94, etc., and other employment based visa statuses sponsored by the College. The original I-9 form, supporting documents and E-verify report are retained in Human Resources along with a copy of the work authorization.
3. International Students and Scholars: All new international students hired at ICC and authorized to work in the U.S. with an F or J visa are required to complete an I-9 form. The original I-9 form, supporting documents and E-verify report are retained in Human Resources along with a copy of the work authorization.
4. Official College Transcripts: For faculty positions, Human Resources must receive a Minimum Faculty Qualifications (MFQ) form authorized by the Vice President of Academic Affairs prior to the first day of employment. In order to complete the MFQ, candidates may submit unofficial transcripts, but must submit an official transcript for each degree they have earned and/or any coursework they have completed prior to the first date of employment.
   NOTE: Human Resources will allow a grace period of one academic term for the new faculty to submit official college transcripts. Failure to submit official college transcripts past the deadline may result in separation of employment.

   For professional positions, candidates must complete the education verification task in the ESR Check system prior to the first day of employment. Candidates should only submit the verification for degrees relevant to their position at the College. If candidates have certifications and/or accreditations relevant to the position, that documentation must be submitted to Human Resources.

5. Orientation: A new employee orientation is generally provided on the first Monday of employment. Objectives for new employee orientation are not only to obtain required paperwork for employment but also to ensure a safe working environment and access to resources for successful employment. New employee orientation is designed to:

   • Complete any outstanding employment paperwork;

     • I-9 documents

     • direct deposit proof

     • acknowledgement forms

   • Understand how to access policies and resources available to employees;

   • Learn about Campus Police and services they provide;

   • Access the Employee Handbook and Collective Bargaining Unit Agreements (if applicable);

   • Participate in compliance training through SafeColleges, some of which may include Mandated Child Abuse Reporter, Ethics, Sexual Harassment, Diversity, and Title IX;

   • Obtain ID badge;

   • Tour the campuses.

     Full-time employees meet with a member of the Benefits department to go over benefits eligible to the employee during their first week of employment. Benefits are effective the date the employee begins work.
6. Department Onboarding: The hiring manager will complete department onboarding of the new hire.
   1. Use the Onboarding New Hire Checklist Form to ensure a consistent practice of new employee onboarding.
   2. Introduce new employees to coworkers.
   3. Review job description with new employees.
   4. Provide new employees with the resources, information and training they need to carry out their work safely and effectively.
   5. Ensure that new employees complete online mandatory training, i.e. Ethics, Sexual Harassment, Diversity, and Title IX.
   6. Set reasonable performance goals, standards and deadlines with all new employees during their initial period of employment.
   7. Conduct evaluations to review and answer any questions new employees may have regarding job tasks, goals, teams, institutional objectives and department outcomes.
   8. For employees under a collective bargaining agreement, to ensure their understanding of the agreement and have access to a copy of their agreement.
   9. Ensure that new employees have an employee mentor who will assist in understanding the ICC culture, Core Values and team expectations.
   10. All departmental onboarding checklists should be returned to the Human Resources Department for placement in the employee personnel file.

Additional Provisions/Information

Close Requisition: Human Resources will close the original requisition and notify remaining applicants the position was filled after the new employee’s first day of employment.

Board Approval: Each month, Human Resources will create a Personnel Recommendation Report as part of the Board of Trustees packet that will detail new employees, hire dates, classifications, and starting salaries. All employees of the College will be employed by action of the Board of Trustees upon recommendation for employment by Human Resources and the President.

Exceptions: Exceptions to this SOP must be approved by the President or Associate Vice President of Human Resources.

Evaluating Internal Hires: When an employee accepts another position within ICC, the employee will be subject to the initial period of employment review in the new position where performance goals and reviews are conducted throughout the period by the supervisor to ensure a successful transition.

Onboarding Internal Hires: When a part-time employee accepts a full-time position, the employee will meet with a member of the Benefits department to go over benefits effective the date of the new position.

Right to Terminate: The College retains the right to terminate the employment relationship of “at will employees” for any legal reason, including during the onboarding period, with or without notice. The terminated employee will not have a right to appeal or use of the complaint/grievance process, except if his/her dismissal pertains to unlawful discrimination. An individual separated from employment, will have any accrued benefits paid out according to federal or state requirements, and any valid medical insurance claims filed during this period will be honored.