LONDON (December 3): The United Kingdom union covering senior Public Servants says low and stagnant pay is pushing a large number of bureaucrats to eye alternative career paths.
The FDA union’s annual State of Pay in the Civil Service survey found that nearly one-third (31 per cent) of officials are actively looking for jobs outside the Public Service. Of these, 97 per cent said that pay was impacting their decision.
Across the total sample of 4,726 respondents, 64 per cent said they were not satisfied with their current pay, and 76 per cent said they believed the current pay system was “unfair and inequitable”.
Public sector pay has been capped or frozen at various intervals since 2010. This year, the majority of Public Servants were given an average pay rise of 4.5-to-five per cent, plus a one-off payment of £1,500 ($A2,880) following months of strikes over low pay. Senior bureaucrats got an average 5.5 per cent rise.
The report stated that while this was a step in the right direction, it did not undo the years of pay restraint that had meant Public Servants’ median salaries at each grade had reduced in real terms by between 12 per cent and 23 per cent since 2010.
*********
New rules for Public Service ‘toppers’
NEW DELHI (December 4): All successful candidates in India’s Union Public Service Commission (USPC) examination will now have to terminate their relationships with coaching institutes upon joining the bureaucracy.
In a major change, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has barred candidates passing the examinations from enjoying round-the-year advertising revenue from institutes that coach them and use the advertisement to attract future students.
This will mainly affect those who are ranked first in the annual examination (known as toppers) who are widely reported and feted when the results are announced. Some have even given up their Public Service careers to work full time on giving advice to future aspirants.
The decision follows an inquiry by the CCPA which claimed some coaching institutes resorted to misleading and exaggerated claims constituting unfair trade practices under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
*********
More casualties in cash-for-jobs probe
NEW DELHI: The Indian State Government of Assam has suspended 21 officers, the latest casualties in a long-running investigation into a cash-for-job scam involving the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC).
The suspended individuals include 11 Assam Police Service officers and four Assam Civil Service officers.
The scam was unearthed in 2016 when a doctor, Angshumita Gogoi, tipped off the police after she was promised a job though the APSC on payment of $A1,800.
This led to the arrest and conviction of then Chair of the APSC, Rakesh Kumar Paul and several others. Mr Paul was granted bail in March after spending six years in jail.
*********
Sanctions on non-voting officers denied
HONG KONG (December 6): Online claims that Hong Kong Government employees may be penalised for not taking part in the ‘patriots-only’ District Council elections were misinformation intended to sow discord in the Public Service, Chief Secretary for Administration, Eric Chan says.
He said individuals with “ulterior motives” were spreading false information online about potential penalties for Public Servants who did not cast a ballot in the restricted District Council race.
The official rejected the speculations at a Civil Service Family Day in support of the overhauled election organised by the Disciplined Services Consultative Council and the Police Force Council.
He said the online claims were attempts to undermine Hong Kong “and we must be cautious about this soft resistance.”
*********
Officers face loss of medical cover
NAIROBI (December 7): Kenyan Public Servants are expected to lose their enhanced medical cover under the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).
At least 73 public institutions that have been enjoying comprehensive medical cover offered by the NHIF have now been left hanging in the balance following the enactment of a new social health scheme.
Also affected are millions of retired public officers who have been relying on the scheme, as almost all private medical insurance schemes have an age limit on cover.
This follows an announcement by Chief Executive of the NHIF, Elijah Wachira that it will scrap the EduAfya, a scheme that has benefited millions of secondary school students.
*********
New push to recruit disabled officers
PHNOM PENH (December 7): Cambodian Prime Minister, Hun Manet says the Government will encourage people with disabilities to become Public Servants.
“In accordance with the Law on the Protection and Promotion of People with Disabilities, the Government will increase its support for the disabled in Cambodia,” Mr Hun Manet said.
“We will continue to provide opportunities for the disabled to become important Civil Servants to participate in society, and make their lives more inclusive.”
He said the Government had set quotas of up to two per cent for people with disabilities to work in Ministries and public institutions, as well as the private sector.”
No comments:
Post a Comment