December 16, 2016
Bulletin interne de l'Institut Pasteur
Maximum staff numbers for research entities
The maximum staff numbers for research entities (known as ETM) are decided when an entity is first set up and can be revised during the departmental assessment by the High Council for Evaluation of Research and Higher Education (HCERES).
The entity head is informed of the ETM by a formal decision issued by the Scientific Secretariat General (SGS). Any changes to the ETM require a new decision to be issued which overrules the previous decisions.
The ETM is used to establish the annual operating budget allocated to each unit. All entities are given a fixed budget in accordance with their ETM. Any change to the ETM during the course of the year is taken into account in the following year's budget.
All staff members in the entity for more than four months of the year are included in the calculations for the ETM on a pro rata basis in line with their working hours (for example someone working on a half-time basis in the unit is counted as 0.5).
The ETM does not include assistants or technical support staff (laboratory technicians).
A temporary authorization to exceed the ETM (known as an ATD) for a limited period (for a specific reason such as an ERC grant or hosting doctors or visiting scientists) may be granted to an entity but may not entail an extension to working premises or an increase in the budget. Requests should be made to the SGS and will be examined by the Scientific Management Board (CODIS).
The ETM may be increased if a group or state employee already on campus is assigned to the entity. In some cases, the ETM of the group or person assigned to the entity is accounted for separately.
In the event that a group or person leaves the entity, the ETM is reduced if the ETM for the group or person was accounted for separately. If the group or person was in the core ETM for the entity, the ETM is not adjusted.
The entity head should check that the ETM will not be exceeded before making any new recruitments. Exceeding the ETM on a one-off basis (for one member of staff for no more than three months) is tolerated but should remain an exception. The entity head should monitor the development of his or her staff using a chart; a template has been provided for this purpose by the SGS.