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CCivil Service System Development in ivil Service System Development in the Context of Building Local the Context of Building Local GovernanceGovernance
Tony Verheijen,
Senior Public Sector Specialist,
The World Bank
OutlineOutline
Relevance of discussing civil service systems in the context of local governance
Types of civil service systems and their relevance to local government
Key issues in building civil service systems in Post-Communist states
The relevance of civil service systems The relevance of civil service systems
Design of civil service systems can facilitate or hinder capacity development at local level: – Key questions to be considered:
• Restricted or inclusive definition of the civil service system?
• What is the relation between employment conditions for civil and public service?
• Does the civil service system include local government employees?
• Is the system limited to local state administration or are employees of local self-governing authorities included?
• What are the provisions governing mobility and remuneration?
Integrated vs. separated civil service Integrated vs. separated civil service systemssystems Clarification of definitions:
– Fully integrated systems include local self-governing authorities, but not necessarily public service employees (education, health sector etc.)
– Separation of public and civil service has become a generally accepted practise
– Discussion on civil service is increasingly focusing on defining the core civil service
Advantages and disadvantagesAdvantages and disadvantages
Integrated civil service systems have certain potential advantages…..– Relatively beneficial for local government
employees: possible benefits are more significant at local level
– Opportunities for mobility make local government more attractive
– Professional standards enforced across all levels of government
……but also disadvantages– Infringes on the independence of local
self-government– Imposes high cost on local
governments– Lack of control over salary cost, takes
away managerial flexibility– Risk of ‘brain drain’ if mobility is one
way
Important to note:
Relative importance of advantages and disadvantages depends on structure of self-governing authorities (size of the basic units) and local revenue raising ability
Partially integrated systemsPartially integrated systems
Covering local state administration only Advantages:– Allows for rotation between levels of
administration– Provides quality control for local state
administration staff
Disadvantages:– Potentially weakens local self-governing
authorities
Emerging modelEmerging model
Core civil service across levels of government Rationale: – Limiting the high start-up cost of creating a civil
service system– Flexibility combined with career opportunities for
talented staff– More competitive remuneration for core civil
servants
– Definition of civil service ‘level-based’ rather than ‘employer-based’
Defining boundariesDefining boundaries
Rationale – Exercise of public authority–Managerial responsibility– Policy responsibility vs. operational
responsibility
– Limited experience with defining criteria across levels of government
Integrated systems ‘tested’ in Europe Integrated systems ‘tested’ in Europe and CIS statesand CIS statesKazakhstan (in progress)Lithuania (implementation
abandoned in 2002)
Both mainly inclusive:– broad definition of civil service– attempting to include local self-
governing authorities
DDesirability of integrated systemsesirability of integrated systems
The design of the system is the key issue:– Remuneration system– Quality control: framing co-operation between
different levels – Mobility system: one way or both ways?
Feasibility of creating integrated systems depends on the administrative structure of the state (size of basic units of self-government)
Key choices in civil service system Key choices in civil service system developmentdevelopment Key distinctions:– Internal Labour Market: Career systems vs.
position systems– Centralised or decentralised management– Definition of the politico-administrative
interface– Representative Civil Service or Elite Civil
Service– Socialisation system (training, on the job
learning, etc.)
Classical Career SystemClassical Career System
Employment conditions generally defined by law High degree of distinction between civil service and
private sector employment conditions (better pension provisions, job security for lower salaries)
General competition as the main form of recruitment Administration divided in bodies of generalists and
specialists Automatic advancement to the highest level in
class/category, based on seniority and performance Progress to higher class/category mainly through
internal examination
Classical Position SystemClassical Position System
Civil service employment conditions close to those prevailing in the private sector
No exceptional job guarantees Mainly targeted recruitment of specialists No automatic advancement up to a certain
level Administration often fragmented
Management systemManagement system
Centralised systemNetworked systemDecentralised system
Centralised systemCentralised system
Key feature: Central Unit manages recruitment, promotion, dismissal based on input from line units
High degree of coherence in the system Limited scope for ‘favouritism’ Promotes horizontal mobility in the system Can complicate the socialisation process Limits flexibility
Networked systemNetworked system Key features– Central unit defines and monitors procedures and
trains recruitment units– Central unit trains personnel units and keep registry– Actual selection, promotion and dismissal decisions
with the line ministries/administrative units Issues to consider
– Requires strong personnel offices able to cope with the requirements of dual subordination
– Failure of real network development can lead to the disintegration of the system
Decentralised systemDecentralised system
Key feature: central rules exist but no central enforcement mechanism
Issues to consider:– Level of discretion for ministries risks uneven
implementation– Requires a strong commitment to the rules
and regulations by all actors– Differing interpretations of rules can lead to a
de facto system collapse
Politico-Administrative relations Politico-Administrative relations
Lack of regulated Politico-Administrative interface can have fatal consequence for administrative stability
Four main prevailing models for regulating the interface:– Banning political activity of civil servants– Reliance on mutual restraint– Defined political ‘zone’ in the administration– Political appointees placed in political cabinets
outside the hierarchy
Representative vs. elite civil serviceRepresentative vs. elite civil service
Relates to:– Perception of the role of the state
(paternalistic or laissez-faire)– Structure of Society (egalitarian or class
based)Ways to promote representativeness:– affirmative action (quota etc.)– change of entry system (take out bias of
examinations)
Socialisation modelsSocialisation models
Two distinct approaches:– Socialisation mainly through learning
on the job– Socialisation mainly through training
Development of training capacitiesDevelopment of training capacities
Crucial to public administration at all levels
Key questions:– How to integrate training in staff development– How to build capacities to assess training
needs– How to frame the delivery system
Training and staff developmentTraining and staff development
Overcoming reluctance by creating incentives
– Training Plans as an integral part of career development
– Mandatory budget percentages for staff development
Training needs assessmentTraining needs assessment
Requires strong networks of personnel offices, at central and at local level
Capacity development on training needs assessment required at all levels
In relations to the state administration government, requires a strong central resource unit to support personnel offices
In relation to local self-government, requires a support unit in the association of local authorities
Relevant training policies to be developed for central and local government on the basis of initial assessments
Delivery systemsDelivery systems
Market-based systems vs. state systems–Market-based: how to ensure relevant
tailor-made programmes in markets with limited competition?
– State sector: how to safeguard efficiency and relevance
Emerging modelsEmerging models
National and regional training institutions covered by the state:– As main providers of training– As instruments for channelling training
needs and sub-contracting delivery Network of private and quasi-
governmental training institutions
The special context of Post-Communist The special context of Post-Communist statesstates The legacy of the previous regime: – Administration as a key instrument of
suppression– Parallel bureaucracy and the supremacy of the
Party– Competing institutions: fragmentation and
duplication– Employment conditions: elimination of
differences between public and private sector, labour code applied to all
– Highly centralised system: double subordination
ResultsResults
Lack of policy-making and co-ordination capacities in the administration
Labour code regime left sufficient room for ‘hiring and firing’
High degree of suspicion of the administration in society and among new political forces
Tradition of impartial administration eliminated
Administrative reform and Administrative reform and developmentdevelopment
Initial Phase: 1989-1995 Incremental change brings further decay
to already weakened systems– Volatile political climate left little possibility for
comprehensive reform packages or adoption of key legislation
– Limited attempts at institution building in the area of training (Poland, Slovakia, Romania)
– Start of institution building process in new states (Baltic States, Slovakia, Slovenia, most NIS), but often still incremental in nature
Administrative reform and Administrative reform and developmentdevelopment
Second phase: 1995 - …… Gradual change in approach to public
administration development– Civil service systems put in place in a majority
of states– Consistent implementation and observance of
rules a key problem across the board– Broad definition of systems limits the scope
for providing incentives– Bonus systems either dysfunctional or not
transparent (e.g. Latvia in the late 1990s)
Management systems remain weak:– Personnel function is the weak link– Central management units do not have the
required power and stature– Politicisation remains a key disease in
emerging systems (with few exceptions)– Training systems remain underdeveloped