(a) In the absence of an eligibility list, the employee with the most unit seniority qualified to do the work in the next lower classification shall have the right to be appointed provisionally to that position until an eligibility list is established. If there is no eligible employee within the immediate lower classification, the employee with the most unit seniority qualified to do the work in the next lower classification shall have the right to be appointed provisionally to that position and so forth until no employees within that unit are eligible for appointment.
(b) If there are no eligible employees within that unit, the employee with the most classification seniority qualified to do the work within that Division, in the next lower classification, shall have the right to be appointed provisionally to that position until an eligibility list is established. If there is no eligible employee within the immediate lower classification, the employee with the most classification seniority qualified to do the work within the Division shall have the right to be appointed provisionally to that position and so forth until no employees within that Division are eligible for appointment.
(c) If no employee is selected within the Division, the Commissioner of the Division shall notify the Department of Human Resources of the vacancy. The Department of Human Resources shall send a notice of the vacancy to all Divisions and to all Union Stewards. The notice shall be posted in all work units. Employees shall have five (5) work days to submit a request to be considered for the position. These requests shall be submitted to the Commissioner of the Division where the vacancy exists. The names and qualifications of the applicants shall be submitted to the Department of Human Resources for a determination as to basic qualifications. The Department of Human Resources shall submit a list of all qualified applicants to the Commissioner of the Division where the vacancy exists. The Commissioner of that Division may appoint from this list to fill the vacancy provisionally.
(d) As a result of the Civil Service Qualifying Procedure, if a provisional employee is ineligible for certification to the position, the employee shall have the right to return to the classification within the Division they held prior to that provisional appointment.
(e) If the employee is certified to the position, the time spent as a provisional employee shall be counted toward the completion of the employee's probationary period.
(f) When an employee has served in a provisional status in the same classification for a period one (1) year of continuous service during which period no examination is held, said employee shall, pursuant to the rules of the Civil Service Commission, become a permanent appointee in the classified service at the conclusion of such one (1) year period.