Each position within an agency or institution, not specifically exempted by a line-item entry in the agency or institution appropriation act, must be allocated to a class in the classification plan. Additional classified positions, approved for use by an agency or institution, but not included in the appropriation act, will be allocated to a class by the Office of Personnel Management. Each class in the classification system will be described by a class specification.

Job audits are conducted as necessary or as requested by agencies or institutions to properly classify positions, either by allocating the position to an existing class or by development of a new class where no existing class properly describes the job being performed. Positions identified as misclassified by job audit will be reported to the agency or institution for correction. Agencies/institutions may use OPM Form 010 to request an audit.

The following are reasons for conducting a job audit:

In those instances where the agency or institution disagrees with the classification recommendation of the Office of Personnel Management, the agency or institution may appeal to the Manager of the Classification and Compensation Section. Another analyst will be scheduled to re-audit the position. In cases where the audit results are the same, the original recommendation will remain. Should the recommendation differ, the Manager of the Classification and Compensation Section will review both audit files and determine the final recommendation.

Each class specification will contain statements of minimum qualifications necessary to perform job duties described in the class specification at a satisfactory level upon entry of the employee to the class. Minimum qualifications statements are summaries of the education and experience or other qualifications necessary to provide the knowledge, abilities and skills required for satisfactory job performance.

The Office of Personnel Management, with the review of the Arkansas Legislative Council, will revise the minimum qualifications statements as necessary in order to maintain a valid relationship between the minimum qualifications and the duties and responsibilities described by the class specification.

Positions in addition to those established in appropriation acts for state agencies and institutions may be established through the use of Miscellaneous Federal Grants and emergency fund allocations for Supplemental Personal Service Positions. The Office of Personnel Management shall allocate such additional classified positions to the appropriate class.

Upon request, the Office of Personnel Management shall determine the establishment of provisional classified and non-classified additional positions established for each institution in the Higher Education Expenditure Restriction Act, the additional provisional positions to the appropriate grade or salary level.

(Requests should be submitted on OPM FORM 009.)

The Office of Personnel Management has been assigned two hundred (200) pool positions at grade 26 to be used to reclassify positions in state agencies and institutions when the agency or institution does not have a vacant position available with the proper classification and grade. To obtain a pool position, agencies and institutions must complete OPM Form 056. The agency or institution must surrender a position to the pool.

NOTE: Pool positions expire at the end of each biennium. Budget requests will be required to continue pool positions into the new biennium.

The allocation of a position to a particular class may be changed by the Office of Personnel Management between legislative sessions to assure correct classification, provided that no position is reclassified to a grade higher than that grade authorized by the General Assembly.

Positions having a line item maximum salary may not be reclassified from line item status.

A position may not be allocated to a class having a higher grade than the position as initially authorized.

Positions which have been reclassified may revert to the original authorized class with the approval of the Office of Personnel Management for those within the same occupational group. Those that have been re-classed outside of occupational group will require the approval of the Office of Personnel Management and the review of the Arkansas Legislative Council.

Agency Directors and Institution Heads shall certify that the qualifications of persons appointed or promoted to positions within an agency or institution meet or exceed the minimum qualifications as stated on the class specification.

Applicants for vacant positions will be required to meet the minimum qualifications as stated on the class specification for the class they are to be assigned, unless a substitution of qualifications has been approved. Substitutions of an applicant's education and/or experience for the minimum qualifications may be authorized by the Office of Personnel Management.

To request a review of an applicant's qualifications for possible substitution for the minimum qualifications as stated on the class specification, the agency/institution should include the following information with each request: