Queen Mary recognises the importance of fair, transparent, merit-based recruitment, and the effective support and performance management of our research staff, as provision of good employment conditions will have positive impacts on our researcher wellbeing, and our research excellence.
The research contract for most researchers is modelled on a 35-hour working week, functioning around core hours of 10:00-16:00, Monday to Friday. It is understood that the nature of an individual’s research may require them to work outside these hours, or for greater than the standard work week’s hours on occasion. We support flexible working practices and encourage discussions between research staff and their line managers that should include any appropriate risk assessments to account for flexible, lone and out of hours working, while taking the researcher’s wellbeing into consideration.
Research staff must ensure that they work in accordance with Queen Mary Human Resources policies and procedures, any relevant employment and visa legislation (Visas), as well as any requirements stipulated by their funders. These include understanding any relevant reporting obligations and responsibilities to Queen Mary (e.g., Elements to record impact and research activity); observing any standard operating procedures (SOPs) relevant to their discipline; and fulfilling any training requirements mandated by Queen Mary, or other relevant local or foreign governing body (e.g., Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency governance training), and to their funding body (e.g., ORCID).
Research staff should proactively engage with regular performance and development discussions as part of the probation process and annual appraisal cycle with their line managers and utilise the Performance and Development Appraisal scheme to record their plans for their career development.
Research staff are expected to handle potential instances of research misconduct in an appropriate manner, including reporting research misconduct in accordance with Queen Mary procedures. This also includes cooperating in good faith in the formal processes for handling allegations of research misconduct.
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