Conditions of employment frequently asked questions

Conditions of employment are any requirements, other than qualifications, that must be met or complied with before being appointed to a particular position, and are to be maintained throughout the employment while being the incumbent of this position. Conditions of employment may be the same criteria as for operational requirements or organizational needs.

Yes, a requirement can be both. Merit criteria are criteria used to assess a person to determine whether that person meets the qualifications, operational requirements and organizational needs of the position. They are assessed by Public Service Commission, which can delegate this power to organizations.

Conditions of employment are conditions a person must meet to be appointed to a position and to hold a position after appointment. They are not merit criteria and they are established by the employer.

Some requirements can be both. For example, possessing a valid driver’s licence can be identified as an operational requirement and a condition of employment.

Merit criteria can be used in any order. So if a manager identifies possession of a valid driver’s licence as an operational requirement, he or she can screen out of the appointment process any candidate who does not possess a valid driver’s licence.

Security screening is a special case since only the organization can seek and approve the security screening level required and therefore it is beyond the control of candidates in an appointment process. Security screening can be a very lengthy process, which would slow down the selection process if security levels were identified as operational requirements. It would also lead to an impossible situation in the case of priority appointments since persons with priority appointment rights only have to meet the essential qualifications of the position, yet employer policies require that persons must meet the required security level before being appointed to a position. So security screening levels should not be identified as operational requirements but as conditions of employment (which are the responsibility of the employer). The assessment of security levels is done after a person is chosen for appointment but before the appointment is made.

Yes. These criteria, as bonafide work requirements, may be stated as conditions of employment, which are to be maintained throughout the period of employment in the position. Stated as an operational requirement, the manager may assess the candidate’s ability to undertake such work requirements as part of the merit criteria. Conditions of employment do not form part of the merit criteria.

Yes. Willingness to relocate can be a condition of employment. One should, however, not state to which geographic region, but use a generic statement. Willingness to relocate can also be an operational requirement, however, as such is assessed as part of the merit criteria.

Conditions of employment are evaluated on a meet or does not meet basis. They are not assessed as you would for merit criteria, but it must be determined that the person does meet or comply with the conditions before being appointed to the position.

Yes. However, s/he must meet these conditions before being appointed to the position.

No, the person cannot start in a job unless they meet the condition of employment. The condition is a requirement that a person must meet prior to starting work.