Professional Staff At Will Employment Information and FAQs

No. You do not need to sign anything or take any further action. Your at will status will begin at the end of your contract. For most employees that is June 28, 2020.  

The change in your employment status to at-will does not impact your benefits.

The change in your employment status to at-will does not have an impact on your professional classification. 

Under your current contract, you only received a contract of employment for one year, which was subject to non-renewal every year. As an at-will employee, your employment with Boise State University will be for no specified period. To terminate that relationship, you may resign for any reason. Similarly, Boise State University is free to conclude its employment relationship with you with at least 15 calendar days’ written notice, with or without cause. While at-will employment does not have a specific term of employment, like an annual contract provides, employees have statutory rights under federal and state laws, such as unemployment insurance and protection through anti-discrimination laws. Federal and state governments have laws protecting at-will employees from wrongful termination. Reasons can include race, religion, citizenship, retaliation for performing a legally protected action, whistleblowing, disability, gender, age, physical health, sexual orientation, and other factors protected by employment laws.

No, please know that this non-renewal does not mean your employment is terminated. Rather, you received a letter from Human Resources (HR) on April 27 offering you an at-will position beginning at the conclusion of your contract in the same role and at your current salary with the same health, life, disability, leave benefits, and Employee Assistance Program benefits. The only exception is if you are part of a small number of employees who have already received a contract non-renewal notice or are part of other small groups of exceptions. 

If you accept the University’s offer of at-will, you would become an at-will employee on June 28, 2020.

Yes, as long as you are not subject to an exception and/or have not received any other communication other than the April 27 notification from Human Resources. If you have questions regarding your particular situation, please email hrs@boisestate.edu or call 208-426-1616. Boise State University is offering you an “at-will” position effective June 28, 2020, in your current role and at your current salary amount. If you accept this offer of employment, your current job responsibilities and duties will continue, along with your current health, life, disability, leave benefits, and Employee Assistance Program benefits. The terms of your employment are subject to Governing Policies and Procedures of the State Board of Education and Boise State University Policies applicable to non-classified employees, but not those applicable to non-classified employees under employment contracts.

Professional employees received an offer of at-will employment beginning June 28, 2020. Your last day of work under the current employment contract will be the last date of your current contract. You will continue to be paid for work performed through the remainder of your current contract. The process regarding the non-renewal of a contract is fully explained in Idaho State Board of Education Policy II.F – Policies Regarding Non-Classified Employees.

No. State Board of Education Policy II.F outlines the process for non-renewal, which requires 60 days notice of non-renewal. Boise State University policies regarding current contracts are being suspended. Board policy has long allowed professional staff to work with or without contracts. 

Most professional employees with a contract. Multi-year contracts and off-cycle contracts are not impacted at this time, as well as other unique situations. 

While this particular step is specific to professional employees, the results of COVID-19 could require our trustees on the State Board to declare a financial exigency that would create similar decisions around faculty and classified staff later in the fall. Again, the timing of this decision is driven by Board policy.

Classified employees do not receive contracts.

No, but your letter outlines an offer of employment.

That is unknown at this time. Communication will be shared in the event contracts are reinstated. 

Yes, but as a professional courtesy we would always like to receive 15 calendar days notice, but realize this may not always be possible.

While a requirement of notice is not part of an at-will relationship, Boise State will provide a minimum of 15 calendar day notice.

You have the opportunity to resign, however, that is not our preference. Please contact Human Resources at HRS@BoiseState.edu prior to making a decision to resign.

As more information becomes available, we will be as communicative and transparent as possible as we know that this can be a stressful time. 

The 15 day notice applies to employees that received notice on April 27, 2020 of a non-renewal with an offer of at-will employment.

Make sure you check your boisestate.edu email for an email sent from Human Resources on Monday, April 27. Some employees have unique contracts and did not receive the email, if you have questions please contact hrs@boisestate.edu.

No. If you received an email with a subject line: “Information regarding Transition of Employment Status for Temporary Benefit-Eligible Professional Employees” and your supervisor already communicated with you that your employment was ending, the communication you received from your supervisor superseded this action. 

Yes, if you received an email with a subject line: “Information regarding Transition of Employment Status for Temporary Benefit-Eligible Professional Employees” and your supervisor already communicated with you that your employment was continuing you will be an at-will employee effective June 28, 2020. 

Yes.

Your HR team is here for you. You may participate in a drop-in Q&A session with your HR team. These sessions are taking place daily starting April 28-May 8 from 12-1 p.m. You may sign up for one of these sessions via Org. Sync.

If you’d like assistance from your HR team before a drop in session is available, you may reach out via email at HRS@boisestate.edu or call and leave us a message at 208-426-1616 and we will promptly get back to you.

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a free, confidential service that provides short-term counseling services to help address personal, financial, career and work-life issues to eligible employees and their families. To access this benefit, simply call the EAP at (877) 427-2327 and identify yourself as a Boise State University employee. If you would like to speak with a mental health counselor or access other mental health resources, you can also call Boise State Counseling Services at (208) 426-1459 to schedule a telemental health counseling session, and/or visit the Boise State Counseling Services website, which offers links to counseling services off-campus, as well as other sources of information and assistance on mental health. There are occasions when a problem or crisis feels too overwhelming to wait for a scheduled appointment. If this is the case, Counseling Services have staff available during standard hours of operation to more immediately assess your needs.