“they pretend to pay us, and we pretend to work” · “they pretend to pay us, and we pretend...
TRANSCRIPT
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
“They pretend to pay us, and we pretend to work”
Public employment & wage bill concerns
in developing and transition countries
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
On the one hand …
Wage bills ballooned as new ministries, departments and enterprises were createdLittle left over for public investment programsResources so thinly stretched that service delivery sufferedMultilateral lending institutions direct that public employment bill should be reduced e.g. HIPC conditions
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
On the other ….
Civil service pay is generally considered lower than that in private sector, see http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/civilservice/development.htmLow pay
discourages talented persons from joining the civil serviceSaid to encourage corruptionDisincentive for high quality service delivery
If the government can’t hire and pay teachers and health staff, how will human capacity be built?
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
What is the real wage bill?
Who is being counted?Allowances monetized?Are officials being paid from the development budget? Off-budget funds?Has government’s liabilities for pension and retirement benefits been calculated?
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
An affordable civil service?
What is the shape of the civil service pyramid?
Related compression ratiosHow do CS wages compare with private sector? – any labor market surveys?
Comparisons at top, middle and lower levelsAdministrators vs. technical staff
Business process re-engineering & Functional reviews
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
Rightsizing difficulties
Employment numbers & location not known –insufficient PMISCivil servants are well organized, high collective bargaining powerFew opportunities in private sector to absorb all excess staffRevolving door syndrome
See World Bank website at http://www.worldbank.org/research/projects/downsize/index.htm
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
Changing employment conditions
Too much job security?What is the value attached to job security?Contract-based employment
Legal framework for downsizingSeparation benefits and voluntary retirement
How much will these cost?
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
Civil Servants value job security
57%
56%
51%
64%
54%
55%
64%
35%
31%
40%
31%
44%
32%
31%
0% 50% 100%
East Caribbean
St Vincent & Grenadines
St Lucia
St Kitts & Nevice
Grenada
Dominica
Antigua-Barbuda
no amount worth consideration 40% or more
Public Expenditure Analysis and Management Staff Training May 23, 2002
Linking pay to performance
Performance agreementsPerformance linked pay
Bonus, merit increments
Performance goals, measures and appraisalHigher pay = higher performance?