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Job posting guidance

Last updated: Oct 30, 2023
FSP Hiring HR

How to make your posting public

For a complete list of hiring process requirements, reference the Hiring Checklist.

Fiscally sponsored projects are welcome to run their own application, posting, review and selection process. At minimum, projects must keep documentation of applications received. Projects have access to Greenhouse to support their hiring processes, and can be added as users by request to fsp at codeforsociety.org.

CS&S core team hires are managed in Greenhouse. The operations team will work in collaboration with the department that is hiring to support their job administration needs.

Job posting content

CS&S core team job postings follow a template, which can be adapted by fiscally sponsored projects to suit their hiring needs.

All FSP job postings must be shared with your FSP manager and approved by the CS&S operations team.

Postings must include:

  • Job title

  • Position type: full time or part time; employee / contract / flexible

  • Salary range in USD

  • A description of CS&S employee benefits for full time US employees: Medical, dental, vision and life insurance, 401k with 4% employer match, and unlimited paid time off (we encourage a minimum of one week off per quarter)

  • Short description / Call for applicants (CS&S will use this for the blurb on our jobs page)

  • Position Description

  • [FSP name] is fiscally sponsored by Code for Science & Society (CS&S). CS&S is an equal opportunity employer committed to hiring a diverse workforce at all levels of the organization thereby creating a culture that allows us to better serve our clientele, our employees and our communities. We value and encourage the contributions of our colleagues and strive to create an environment where everyone can reach their full potential and drive outstanding results. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law. This policy applies with regard to all aspects of one’s employment, including hiring, transfer, promotion, compensation, eligibility for benefits, and termination.

Restrictions:

  • FSPs cannot offer “stipends” to employees or contractors and this language should not be in job postings

  • FSPs can offer “reimbursements” for trainings, office equipment, etc.

You may want to consider including:

  • The communities you hope to reach/ "strongly encourage applications from” with this call, along with a statement connecting who you hope to reach with the mission of your work and vision for the role.

  • List of must-haves and nice-to-haves, alongside which you may want to include a qualifier to lower barriers like: “If you don’t believe you meet all qualifications as described, we still encourage you to apply. The best candidate for the position will possess a combination of skills and experience.”

  • Insight into your hiring process and timeline: will you be reviewing applications on a rolling basis or after a certain date? How many rounds of interviews will there be? Do you have a desired start date range in mind? 

  • Contact information for questions and access accommodations

Application form

CS&S core team hires, and FSPs by request, use a basic Airtable form, customizable with the addition of fields such as supplemental screening questions.

You can lower barriers to applicants by keeping screening questions minimal. You may also wish to include questions on your form that will provide data for future assessment of the search process (i.e. how did you learn about this position, have you applied for a position with CS&S/this project before, etc.)

Words to avoid

The language you use in a job posting conveys a great deal about your team’s culture and values to potential candidates. In addition to identifying words and phrases that align best with what you do and how you do it, be careful to avoid any words that carry sexist, racist, ableist, xenophobic, classist and ageist associations, such as:

  • Gendered pronouns or terms (ex. He/She, Latino/a, spokesman, craftsmanship, man hours, etc.)

  • Minority

  • Blacklist/Whitelist

  • Cakewalk

  • Tribe (context specific)

  • Native (context specific)

  • Spirit animal

  • Guru

  • Handicapped

  • Crazy, insane

  • Deaf

  • Blind

Further resources:

Compliance Concerns

Job postings must abide by US compliance concerns governed by both federal and state labor laws. Because CS&S employs people all over the US, when one state adopts a labor law, we ensure that it is applied company-wide to mitigate compliance issues.

CS&S’s operations team manages organization-wide compliance issues and will communicate new requirements as necessary. For updated information on state-by-state labor laws:
https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/legal-and-compliance/state-and-local-updates/Pages/default.aspx

Wage transparency laws

The CS&S HR Department will ensure all job postings satisfy wage transparency laws requirements.

More than 10 states have passed labor laws, with Colorado’s being the most restrictive, that prohibit employers from asking applicants to disclose their salary history, and require employers to provide explicit salary ranges in all job postings and share promotional opportunities internally such that all employees have transparent and equal access.

In response, all FSP and internal employment positions (note that this does not apply to contractor hires where employment is not an option) must specify a salary range and be shared on the CS&S website, the CS&S “css-employees” Slack channel, and/or the “jobs-and-opportunities” channel (note that this channel includes non-CS&S employees as well). If an employment position is sensitive, the minimum requirement is that a notification of the new position and its title are shared internally, along with contact information to receive further details.

Anti-discrimination laws

While a job posting may include language encouraging specified communities to apply, it is crucial that a posting not include any language that implies applicants at any stage of the hiring process may be discriminated against based on their race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age or employment status.

To read more about the laws protected by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission:

https://www.ftc.gov/policy-notices/no-fear-act/protections-against-discrimination

For a more detailed breakdown of how anti-discrimination laws impact the content of a job posting:

https://www.thebalancecareers.com/what-employers-should-not-list-in-a-job-ad-2061390

Where to share your posting

Required by CS&S

  • CS&S website (handled by your FSP Manager and CS&S operations). More sensitive postings can be shared on the CS&S employees Slack channel, if desired.

    • Note that positions posted on the CS&S site are cross-posted by Fast Forward

Suggested

If you want to cast a wide net:

Many academic institutions offer jobs boards that will reach research and trade-specific communities you can match with the responsibilities of the role you’re hiring for, such as:

Twitter Hashtags

Twitter is still the dominant public square for many industries, using relevant hashtags can help your job get seen.

  • #publicintresttech

  • #datalibs

  • #openscience

  • #opensource

Maintainer
Jamille White
she/her
Director of Human Resources

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