Thanks to everyone for their input on the the current placement policies. Based on comments received and internal department discussions, here is a draft of the new policy. For comparison, the current policy can be found here: https://www.star-fleet.com/pd/policies.php

Subject to a need for any major revisions, I’ll keep this up for a discussion until May 20.

Daniel

Academy Requests

If a new member requests to be placed in the Academy, the Personnel Department will place that new member in the Academy if there is an Academy ship available that that can accommodate the new member’s requested posting speed (as set out further in this policy).

If a returning member requests to be placed in the Academy, the Personnel Department will refer the request to the Academy for the Academy’s decision.

If the reason a new member cannot be placed in the Academy is due to their requested posting speed, the Personnel Department will give the new member the options of either picking a different posting speed or being placed on a non-Academy ship at their requested speed with a mentor.

If the reason a new member cannot be placed in the Academy is due to there being no available Academy ship, regardless of ship speed, the Personnel Department will give the new member the options of either waiting a few days to see if an Academy ship becomes available or being placed on a non-Academy ship with a mentor.

If a new member requesting the Academy cannot be placed in the Academy, the Academy will be notified with the reasons why.

Specific Ship Requests

If a member requests to be placed in a specific ship, the Personnel Department will place that member on that specific ship, provided there is an available space on that ship (as set out further in this policy) and there is no bylaw or ship charter restriction against the placement. If the ship’s posting speed cannot accommodate the member’s requested posting speed, the member shall be informed of the conflict and ask for their confirmation prior to the placement.

Ship Rosters

For the purpose of this policy, when reviewing a ship’s roster, all rostered character or players (as the case may be) will be counted, regardless of whether the rostered character or player is AWOL or on an LOA.

Required Ship Conditions

A ship must meet all of the following conditions before Personnel Department will place a member on that ship:

• Either the CO or XO must be active. A CO or XO who is on an LOA of any length is not considered active for this condition. In the case of an Academy placement, there is an exception to this condition if the Academy Commandant believes there is sufficient ability to supervise a new cadet on the ship without an active CO or XO.
• The DH for the department under consideration must be active. For Academy placements, a DH who is on an LOA of any length is not considered active for this condition. for non-Academy placements, a DH who is on an iLOA (an LOA with no stated end-date) or an eLOA (an LOA with at least 30 days remaining) is not considered active for this condition.
• The department under consideration is not full. For non-Academy placements, a full department is two junior officers. for Academy placements, a full department is defined by Academy policy.
• The majority of the ship's rostered players are not AWOL or on an LOA, or is otherwise deemed by the Personnel Director to be unhealthy. If the Personnel Director deems a ship to be unhealthy for any reason other than an absent CO and XO, the ship's CO, XO and Fleet Commander shall notified with the reasons why.
• The ship must have the required posting speed, as stated in the ship's Ship Profile or by Academy policy (if there is no Ship Profile speed or relevant Academy policy, the ship shall be deemed to be "Medium"):

The Personnel Department will first try to find an available ship for the member’s first choice of departments. If there are no available ships, the Personnel Department will try to place in the member’s second choice and then third choice of departments.

For Academy placements, if there is no availability in the member’s first three choices of departments, the Academy will be notified and the new member will be given the option to be placed in the remaining fourth department, wait a few days to see if an Academy space opens up in their first three department choices, or be placed outside of the Academy with a mentor.

For non-Academy placements, if there is no availability in the member’s first three choices of departments, the President will be notified and the new member will be given the option to be placed in the remaining fourth department or wait a few days to see if a space opens in their first three department choices.

If there are no available ships in the club, direction will be sought from the President.

Multiple Available Ship

If there are multiple available ships for the department in question, the following “tie-breakers” will be applied, in the following order, until there is only one available ship:

1. Preference is given to ships with the least number of cadets or junior officers in the ship's department.
2. Preference is given to the ships that closely match the member's requested posting speed, if a ship at that speed is available.
3. (For non-Academy placements.) Preference is given to the ships where the DH of the department in question is not on an LOA.
4. Preference is given to the ships that have gone the longest period of time without receiving a new member.
5. Preference is given to the ships that have the fewest rostered players on the ship, not including GM/GMT/GMM positions. (A player with more than one rostered character on the ship is considered one player for the purpose of this rule.)
6. If there is still more than one ship, the Personnel Department may apply their best judgment or flip a coin.

Ranks

Generally, any member placed on a ship by the Personnel Department will be given a character rank of Cadet (for Academy placements) or Ensign (for non-Academy placements).

If the Personnel Department is transferring an existing character to a new ship, the character may keep its current rank, subject to the consent of the new ship’s CO.

Placement Notifications

The following shall be notified when a member is placed on a ship, which shall be done by cc-ing them on the new member’s placement email:

• CO
• XO
• DH
• Academy (for Academy placements)

If a mentor has been requested for a non-Academy placement, the Academy will be notified of the request.

Disputes

All disputes regarding this policy shall be resolved by the Personnel Director. If the Personnel Director is the CO or XO of the ship in question, the dispute shall be resolved by the Assistant Personnel Director. If both the Personnel Director and Assistant Personnel Director are the CO and XO of the ship in question, the dispute shall be resolved by the Second Assistant Personnel Director. In all cases, the decision of the Personnel Department is final.