Creating a position

• Use clear, concise language. Don’t use ambiguous or elaborate language. The goal is to be literal, not literary.
• Use non-discriminatory language.
• Describe only the duties, skills, and knowledge required of the position, and avoid describing personal traits.
• Be accurate about the duties and responsibilities of the position – don’t understate or overstate them.
• Describe the position as it exists today – not how it was in the past, or how it will be in the future.
• Avoid technical terms, acronyms, or abbreviations. If you must use acronyms or abbreviations, use the full term the first time followed by the acronym or abbreviation in brackets.
• Make sure the skills, knowledge, and attributes that you require in the position are directly related to the duties and responsibilities performed in the “Work Performed” section of the job description.
•  State those education, certification, specific UBC training, or experience as requirements of the position if  you can demonstrate that they're essential to the duties and responsibilities of the position, or unless they are required by law or a relevant licensing body.

When outlining the “Work Performed” section of the job description:

• Write one clear statement for each major duty. For some statements, you may need to elaborate with supporting information.
• List statements in descending order of importance, and begin each with an action verb.
• Construct each statement to include: 
  • “What” – use a verb to describe what action is being performed
  • “How” – indicate how the action will be performed; use terms like “based on”, “by using”, or “working with”. Describe the knowledge, information, tools / equipment / materials, or people that are necessary for the action
  • “Why” – indicate the reason the action is performed, and clarify what the goal is, how it will satisfy a need, who has the need and what it is
• For duties that involve less than 5% of the job, address these in a general statement at the end of the “Work Performed” section, such as “and performing other related duties”. These duties are not normally considered a major duty.

Please include the following general EDI statement at the top of every job description posted at UBC:

"At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.​​​​​​"​

The new EDI statements will be added to JDs in the following job family groups:

• Staff – Non-Union
• Staff – Union
• Student (JFG)
• Executive
• Academic (Faculty – Administrative job family only) 

Provide one or two sentences to summarize the purpose of the position. This may be expressed in terms of duties to be performed, results to be achieved, or key contributions to be made.

Provide a brief description of the unit to give the position’s context.

Describe the relationships, interactions, and liaisons with other functions and the nature of these relationships. Include the positions to which the position reports, works with, contacts (both internally and externally), and supervises.

Identify the core responsibilities of the position – grouping related duties, key deliverables, or results to be achieved.

List responsibilities in order of importance.

Use words that clearly and consistently describe the actual nature of the responsibility. For example, use of “manage” or “lead” indicates full accountability for the area versus “coordinate”, “support” which indicates a contribution to, but not full accountability.

If applicable, outline specific conditions of employment and/or working conditions.

Describe the level of decision making expected, and if the work will be subject to checking and by whom.

Describe the types of situations or problems that would require exercising judgment, and describe the consequences of inappropriate judgment exercised by the position.

If applicable, outline the level of supervision the position provides.

If applicable, outline the level of supervision the position gives to others.

List the minimum qualifications required for the position, including education and work experience.

Please include the following EDI statement bullets at the bottom of this section:

• Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own.
• Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

List any other additional qualifications that would make the candidate excellent for the role, including the skills, abilities and experience that would make someone successful in the position.

Here are some very broad guidelines of employment groups:

Academic Executive: Faculty in VP and AVP roles are classified as Academic Executive.

Administrative Executive: Staff in VP and AVP roles from an administrative background, rather than an academic one, are Administrative Executive staff.

BCGEU Okanagan Employees: Staff in the BCGEU Bargaining Unit in the Okanagan Campus

BCGEU Childcare workers: Childcare workers in the BCGEU Bargaining Unit in Vancouver

CUPE 116: CUPE 116 represents trades and some technical staff on campus. Research assistants/technicians are covered under this group, if they are working in a certified unit.

CUPE 2278: CUPE 2278 has two components: one represents the UBC’s teaching assistants and the other represents the instructors in the English Language Institute.

CUPE 2950: The University’s clerical, secretarial, and library employees are mostly represented by CUPE 2950.

Executive Administrative Staff: Executive and administrative staff that are not in a bargaining unit

Faculty: UBC’s faculty are responsible for teaching, scholarship, and research.

Farm Workers: This group works on UBC farms at Agassiz​​​.

IUOE 115: UBC’s certified operating engineers.

Management and Professional: The Association of Administrative and Professional Staff (AAPS) represents most of the University’s Management and Professional Staff. Some M&P staff are excluded from the bargaining unit.

Non-union Technicians/Research Assistants: TRAs provide varying levels of research support to faculty and staff. TRAs perform similar work to CUPE 116 Technicians, but are employed in non-certified departments.

Calculate the benefits cost for hiring an employee in a specific employee group by referring to the Benefits Cost Calculator.

We have also included this helpful Benefits Rates document that shows the percentage amount you will need to budget on top of the salary, for each employee group.