Individual Contract Policy

Supplemental Guidance:

118. 
     A former staff becoming an individual contractor poses potential risks to the organization. As such, the break in service must be consistently applied. Clear measures must be taken to ensure that the records demonstrate that the individual freely made the choice to change status, and that they understand that under the individual contract modality, there are and there should be no expectations nor entitlement to re-employment as a staff member. For more detailed information regarding separation policies, please clickHR Separation from Services.
     

Determining fees of former staff members

119. 
     Individual contract fees are based on the nature and complexity of the assignment to be performed. Fees payable to former staff members engaged under individual contracts shall not be based on the level of remuneration they had before separation from the United Nations.
     

Restrictions concerning former staff members in receipt of a pension benefit

120. 
     Employment of former staff members who are in receipt of a pension benefit from the UNJSPF shall be subject to the following restrictions:
     

1. 
   Former staff members may not receive compensation of more than US$ 50,000 for up to six months of employment or engagement, without suspension of his or her UNJSPF retirement benefit.
   
2. 
   In all cases, former staff members may not be re-employed at a level higher than that at which they separated from the organization, or higher than the level at which regular staff members are remunerated for the same function at the same duty station.
   

121. 
     These provisions apply when the retiree is engaged in their individual capacity, but not to cases where the retiree is engaged under a reimbursable loan agreement signed with an entity employing them.
     

Engaging Close Relatives of UN Staff Members

122. 
     In order to avoid real or perceived family influence or conflict of interest, the UN Staff Regulations and Rules provide that: “An appointment shall not be granted to a person who is the father, mother, son, daughter, brother or sister of a staff member, unless another person equally well qualified cannot be recruited” (see Staff Rule 4.7(a)). This prohibition also applies to individuals engaged through individual contracts.
     
123. 
     United Nations Volunteers are not included in this prohibition, but any family relationships between a UNDP staff member or employee and a UNV must be disclosed when it becomes known. This prohibition does not extend to a candidate who applies for a position with UNDP under any type of contractual modality and who is related to a staff member of another UN organization.
     
124. 
     The spouse or recognized partner of a UNDP staff member may be engaged under an individual contract when: 
     

1. 
   He/she is fully qualified for the assignment
   
2. 
   He/she has been selected through a full, transparent and open competitive selection process, without any involvement of the UNDP spouse or recognized partner, and where other qualified candidates were reviewed and shortlisted
   
3. 
   He/she is not given undue preference by virtue of his/her marriage or common law partnership
   
4. 
   He/she is not in the same line of authority as the UNDP spouse/partner
   

125. 
     For more information, please refer to the Policy on Family Relationship.
     

Engaging Current Individual Contractors from Other UNDP Business Units

126. 
     Individual contracts are intended to produce particular outputs and do not usually require individual contractors to report for work on a daily basis. Therefore, one person could potentially hold more than one contract from various business units within UNDP and not have conflicts in terms of time and/or workload management.
     
127. 
     When engaging an individual with a currently active individual contract from another business unit, it is essential that the individual contractor and the requesting unit make an assessment of the situation and exercise sound judgement. The following steps are recommended:
     

1. 
   Communicate with the business unit that issued the currently active contract;
   
2. 
   Reconcile the timelines of the new contract with that of the active contract, steering clear of all possibilities of conflicts;
   
3. 
   Disclose to, and discuss with, the business unit that issued the current contract the intent to issue a new contract, and discuss a mutually agreeable arrangement, taking shared responsibility for possible consequences;
   
4. 
   Communicate to the individual contractor the agreed arrangement between the UNDP business units; and
   
5. 
   Obtain a written statement from the individual contractor, addressed to both business units, that neither of the two contracts will be compromised in terms of quality and timeliness of completion of deliverables and outputs.
   

 Supplemental Guidance:

128. 
     Considering human limitations, as well as the fact that there are only 24 hours in a day, the possibility exists that the timeliness and quality of the outputs for one or both of the contracts will be affected, hence the inherent risk of issuing multiple contracts to the same individual. There may be circumstances where it is impossible for the person performing the services to be at his/her optimum efficiency and effectiveness, such as when one contract requires travelling, and the other requires the person to be reporting daily to another location. Some assignments could be mutually exclusive in terms of time allocation by the contractor.
     

Prohibition on the Engagement of UN/UNDP Staff

129. 
     Consistent with the UNDP policy on the discontinuation of dual appointments, which came into effect in 2009, no UN/UNDP staff (i.e., holders of a valid Continuing Appointment, Fixed-Term Appointment or Temporary Appointment) can be engaged on an individual contract. This prohibition remains applicable even if such staff are on any interim status, such as approved Special Leave Without Pay or any other type of leave.