Public Service News from around the world

Malaysian officers drafted in for flood relief

KUALA LUMPUR (December 31); Almost 5,000 Public Servants have been mobilised to help in post-flood relief missions in affected regions of Malaysia.

Director-General of the Public Service, Mohd Khairul Adib Abd Rahman said Government workers involved would be paid as if they were performing their official duties.

“Ministries will determine and direct officers in their respective Agencies to help implement post-flood duties according to the designated areas,” Mr Mohd said.

"It will be implemented in badly-hit areas for a specific period to ease the hardship of flood victims."

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Irish officials deciding on COVID exemptions

DUBLIN (December 28): Senior Irish Public Servants have been given the responsibility of deciding whether key workers who are symptom-free should be exempt from COVID-19 isolation requirements even if they are close contacts of people with the virus.

In a statement, the Government said this was part of contingency plans to ensure public services remained in operation amid high levels of infection.

There are already exemptions in place for essential staff in the health service; now this could be extended to the Gardaí (police), fire service personnel, prison officers and those involved in infrastructure and public utilities.

The statement noted that Departments are “working to ensure the full implementation of existing sectoral guidance, as well as putting in place contingency plans to ensure the continued operation of critical infrastructure and essential services”.

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New plan seeks ‘thousands’ of UK job cuts

LONDON (December 27): The United Kingdom’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak is preparing a plan to cut tens of thousands of jobs within the Public Service over the next three years, the Financial Times newspaper has reported.

Citing sources that had been briefed on the plan, the newspaper said the Treasury would release more information early in the New Year.

Unions warned the cuts could jeopardise Government plans to move thousands of Public Servants out of London to depressed areas in the Midlands and North.

Earlier in the year, Mr Sunak said he wanted to shrink the Public Service’s size to pre-pandemic levels by the middle of the decade. 

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UK workers’ pay rise ‘in the balance’

LONDON (December 26): The Minister responsible for the United Kingdom Public Service says a fair pay rise for senior Government officials must be balanced against “other considerations”.

Lord Theodore Agnew has sent a letter to the Senior Salaries Review Body stating that the Government’s first priority must be to protect funding for front-line services and ensuring affordability for taxpayers.

Two months ago, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak declared that public sector pay growth over the next three years “should retain broad parity with the private sector”.

However, Lord Agnew’s letter made no mention of this, noting only that recent times had been “challenging”.

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Unions slam Nigerian water privatisation

ABUJA (December 24): Nigeria’s Public Service unions have joined mounting opposition to Government plans to privatise the country’s water supply.

A statement from the unions said the Bill currently before Federal Parliament “is anti-people and will make clean water inaccessible to most Nigerians”.

“Privatisation will price water above the reach of the poor. Privatisation will lead to job losses to privateers who are interested only in maximising profits,” the statement said.

“We implore Governments, Federal and State in Nigeria, to develop the political will and swing into action in order to improve water infrastructure for regular water supply to the citizens.”

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India seeking remedies for PS shortages

NEW DELHI (December 26): The Indian Government is to establish a panel that will seek ways to address the growing shortage of officers in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Police Service (IPS).

According to sources, the panel will assess “the number of officers that would be required over the next 10 years to man the various senior positions in the State and Central cadres”.

The States have a severe shortage of IAS and IPS officers. As an example, in Kerala only 52 per cent of IPS and 62 per cent of IAS positions are filled.

Nationally, there is reported to be a shortage of 2,418 IAS and IPS officers.

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Maltese official under investigation

VALETTA (December 26): The head of the Maltese Public Service is looking into whether action should be taken against the Ministry of Education’s top official following an ethics probe into a contract awarded to his then Minister’s close friend.   

Principal Permanent Secretary, Mario Cutajar said the internal process would consider whether Permanent Secretary at the Ministry, Frank Fabri broke any rules and if he should face disciplinary measures. 

Mr Fabri was named by Standards Commissioner, George Hyzler over a €15,000 ($A23,500) contract awarded to Daniel Bogdanovic, a close friend of Minister for Education, Justyne Caruana who then resigned.   

Mr Hyzler called on Parliament’s Standards Committee to consider passing the matter on to the police for an investigation into possible offences that carry an effective six-month prison sentence.

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Biden signs off on Federal pay rise

WASHINGTON (December 30): Federal Public Servants in the United States are to receive a 2.2 per cent pay increase plus a 0.5 per cent rise in locality payments under an Executive Order signed by President Joe Biden.

The adjustment brings the civilian Public Service into line with the pay rise already granted to the military.

It means that employees in the Senior Executive Service, Senior Level or Scientific and Professional classifications will have a new minimum pay of $US135,468 ($A186,531) in 2022.

However, President of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, Ken Thomas said the award did not take into account recent steep rises in inflation which would likely more than wipe out the increase.

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Pandemic bonus for Philippines workers

MANILA (December 30): Philippines Public Servants are to receive a one-off payment of PHP10,000 ($A270)  under an Administrative Order (AO) signed by President Rodrigo Duterte.

The AO “acknowledges all Public Servants for their collective and unceasing participation in, and invaluable contribution to, the establishment of streamlined Government processes…especially in the midst of the prevailing public health emergency”.

It continues: “It is imperative to provide reasonable incentives and assistance to Public Servants who are impacted not only by the pandemic but also by various natural calamities.”

It states the incentive would be received by civilian personnel in National Government Agencies, including those in State universities and colleges and Government-owned or controlled corporations.

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‘Enrichment’ program for Maldives services

MALE (December 30); Maldives President Ibrahim Solih has launched the Executive Enhancement and Enrichment Program, claiming it will greatly assist the Government’s efforts to improve the delivery of public services.

The President urged all Public Servants to support the two-year program, which builds on the recent launch of the gov.mv message, an official digital service for citizen-to-Government communications.

Mr Solih also stressed the need to create public awareness and train Public Servants on the use of new technology.

“We are working hard to upgrade this technology in all public offices,” Mr Solih said.

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Isle of Man call for more efficient PS

DOUGLAS (January 1): The President of the Isle of Man Chamber of Commerce has called for a more "efficient and responsive" Public Service to aid the island’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kristan McDonald said the public sector needed to follow the private sector in changing its practices to reduce bureaucracy, adding that a Government plan to overhaul Departments was "a very good vision".

Mr McDonald said the private sector had transformed in response to technology changes, demographic change and the pandemic.

"We need the Public Service to do the same thing, changing its risk-averse attitude,” Mr McDonald said.  

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Year-end payment for Cayman retirees

GEORGE TOWN (December 26): Retired Public Servants in the Cayman Islands have received a one-off end-of-year payment of $C150 ($A252).

Deputy Governor and Head of the Public Service, Franz Manderson thanked his Cabinet colleagues for supporting the pensioners.

“Many of them have served our beloved Islands for decades and could easily be described as the backbone of our society,” Mr Manderson said.

Minister for Finance and Economic Development, Chris Saunders said the Government recognised the valuable contributions the former Public Servants had  made during their working lives.

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Bahamas PS ‘poison pill’ for Government

NASSAU (December 26): Bahamas Minister for Public Service, Fred Mitchell has slammed the “deplorable” state of the bureaucracy left behind by the Government of Hubert Minnis, saying it had been a “poison pill” for the incoming administration.

“There’s plenty of passive-aggressive resistance throughout the system; poison pills left by the last administration. I have been told that because Minnis called the General Election suddenly, budgets and payments were thrown out, so I couldn’t even get my staff paid on time,” Mr Mitchell said.

“The whole system is in disarray and off balance. We must fix the public administration. We must fix the institutions of Government so they can appropriately respond to what the political directorate requires.”

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Bihar PS hopeful foils train robbery

PATNA (January 1): An applicant for the Indian State of Bihar’s Public Service examination, Ritik Kumar Verma is being hailed as a hero after he intervened to stop a gang of young robbers on the Bhagalpur-Danapur Intercity Express train, taking a shot in the stomach in the process.

Police said the robbers boarded the train at Bhagalpur and as soon as it was in motion began demanding valuables from travellers. Mr Verma (27) intervened and was shot, prompting the gang to pull the emergency cord and flee.

Mr Verma was rushed to hospital where doctors said the wound was not life-threatening. Police said he had been studying for the State Public Service examination with an ambition to serve the people.

Superintendent of Police at Jamalpur Rail, Amir Javed said Mr Verma and other passengers had helped to identify members of the dozen-strong gang and he was confident of arrests.

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Praise for Jamaica’s front-line workers

KINGSTON (December 31): Jamaica’s healthcare workers have been praised for their work on the front-line of the battle to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Nigel Clarke highlighted the work of the Nurses Association of Jamaica, the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association, and the Jamaica Midwives Association.

Speaking after the signing of an agreement for a four per cent salary increase for all public sector workers, Dr Clarke said Jamaica’s health system had experienced an unprecedented crisis sparked by the pandemic, resulting in a significant economic fallout.

“There was no work-from-home for nurses, doctors and midwives. On the contrary, their work became harder and more intense, and the risk was greater,” Dr Clarke said.

The full International PS News service will resume on January 18