Decisions and the judgment upon which the decisions are based must be independent from conflicting interests and must hold the best interest of the University of Kentucky foremost. Conflicts of commitment relate to an individual's distribution of effort between University appointment and outside activities.
The University of Kentucky permits external employment or self-employment in an employee’s profession or specialty (with the exception of employees participating in a practice plan) where there is not a conflict of interest or commitment. Faculty and professional administrative employees are expected to devote their primary professional loyalty, time and energy to University of Kentucky teaching, research and service endeavors; activities outside the University must be conducted without detracting from these primary commitments. A conflict of commitment generally occurs when the pursuit of outside activities interferes with obligations to students, to colleagues and to the missions of the University. These conflicts may become apparent in regular performance reviews, in connection with annual salary decisions and scheduled reviews incident to promotion, reappointment or tenure decisions and shall be addressed by the appropriate department head. The University policy and procedures on outside consulting can be found in AR 3:9.
A staff employee may be employed outside the University when the employment does not constitute a conflict with University interests and when the hours of outside employment do not coincide or conflict with hours of scheduled work or affect the employee’s ability to perform satisfactorily. A staff employee may also perform outside employment while on vacation, holiday or special leave as long as the outside employment does not constitute a conflict of interest. Adherence with this policy is the responsibility of the staff employee who seeks outside employment; however, it is recommended the employee advise his or her department head of the outside employment.