REPUBLIKA SRPSKA CIVIL SERVICE AGENCY

Transcription

1 REPUBLIKA SRPSKA CIVIL SERVICE AGENCY Banja Luka St. Kralja Petra Karadjordjevica no. 103, tel. 051/ , fax: 051/ , No: /03 Date: CIVIL SERVICE COLEGE Att. Gregory Wilson SUBJECT: Application of the Law on Civil Service in the RS Administration and Rulebook on Unified Procedures for Recruitment, Selection and Appointment of Civil Servants additional information, and the Rulebook on Grading, Promotion, Performance Appraisal and Cessation Civil Servants of Duties We attach to this letter additional explanation for application of the Law on Civil Service in the RS Administration and Rulebook on Unified Procedures for Recruitment, Selection and Appointment of Civil Servants, which has been delivered to the RS Prime Minister and all Ministers of new RS Government. Also, we are attaching here for your consideration draft Rulebook on Grading, Promotion, Performance Appraisal and Ceasing Civil Servants of Duties. You can submit your notifications, recommendations and suggestions on the Rulebook on Grading, Promotion, Performance Appraisal and Ceasing Civil Servants of Duties to the CSA by February 5 th With respect Attachment: 1. Letter no /03, dated from Rulebook on Grading, Promotion, Performance Appraisal and Ceasing Civil Servants of Duties Director Dragomir Kutlija

2 REPUBLIKA SRPSKA CIVIL SERVICE AGENCY Banja Luka St. Kralja Petra Karadjordjevica no. 103, tel. 051/ , fax: 051/ , No: /03 Date: CIVIL SERVICE COLEGE Att. Gregory Wilson SUBJECT: Application of the Law on Civil Service in the RS Administration and Rulebook on Unified Procedures for Recruitment, Selection and Appointment of Civil Servants, additional explanation Linkage: Our letter no /03 dated on The Law on Civil Service in the RS Administration ( Official Gazette of RS no. 16/02 and 62/02) and Rulebook on Unified Procedures for Recruitment, Selection and Appointment of Civil Servants ( Official Gazette of RS no. 01/03) sets out recruitment, selection and appointment of civil servants procedure in a substantially different way compared with the previous regulations. Who are civil servants in the RS Administration? Civil servants in the RS Administration are those who occupies the following positions: Assistant Minister, Secretary to the Ministry, Inspector, Head of the RA Unit and RA Organisation, Deputy of and Assistant Head of the RA Unit and RA Organisation, Expert Adviser, Head of an Internal Organisational Unit (department, section, bureau, registry office, accounting office, etc), Senior Specialist and Specialist (Article 32 of the Law). 1. Recruitment What is the way to fill vacant position in a Civil Service Body? Vacant position in a Civil Service Body is filled up through: 1. internal announcements, 2. public tenders, 3. ruling on nomination and appointment, and 4. in service promotions (Article 43 of the Law and Article 3 of the Rulebook). When to fill up a working position through the internal announcement and for which positions is not possible to advertise the internal announcement? Internal announcement (so called limited competition) is to be advertised in the Civil Service Body where vacant position exists and in media (Article 45, paragraph 1 of the Law and Article 5 of the Rulebook).

3 Internal advertisement may be advertised only for the Specialist position (Article 46 of the Law). So, for all the other civil service positions, filling up of vacant positions have to be done through the open competition. Should the Specialist working position has not been filled up through the internal advertisement, an open competition procedure is to start (Article 42 paragraph 2 of the Law). Who advertises an internal advertisement and what is the deadline for submitting applications to it? The RS Civil Service Agency, on recommendation of the Civil Service Body, in which a position is to be filled up, advertises an internal advertisement. The deadline to submit applications to an internal advertisement is thirty days from the day of its announcement (Article 45 paragraph 2 of the Law and Article 5 paragraph 2 of the Rulebook). When to fill up a working position through the open competition and for which positions is it to be advertised? When there is a need, in a Civil Service Body, to fill up vacant position of Assistant Minister, Secretary to the Ministry, Head of the RA Unit and RA Organisation, Deputy of and Assistant Head of the RA Unit and RA Organisation, Inspector, Expert Adviser, Head of an Internal Organisational Unit (department, section, bureau, registry office, accounting office, etc) or Senior Specialist (articles 47 and 48 of the Law), filling up is to be done through an open competition procedure. The Civil Service Body, which sets out the need to fill up vacant civil service position, submits a request to carry out filling up procedure to the RS Civil Service Agency, in written (Article 4 paragraph 1 of the Rulebook). What is the Agency s role in implementing procedure of recruitment of civil servants? Upon submission of the request to fill up vacant position, the Agency is to invite for an Open Competition, and to appoint the Appointment Committee. Open competition is to be published in media at least three months before expiration of the deadline for registration of candidates (Article 45 of the Law). The Agency is to publish open competition in the daily newspapers accessible to all the citizens of RS and B&H, and in the Official Gazette of RS (Article 6 paragraph 1 of the Rulebook). Appointment committees consists of at least five members, out of which at least three members shall be civil servants from the bodies to which the open competition is related and who have a demonstrable academic and professional expertise in the areas covered by the open competition, while the rest of the members are appointed from the list of

4 experts established by the Agency (Article 7 paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Law and Article 12 of the Rulebook). What does the Appointment Committee do? Upon expiration of the deadline for registration of interested candidates, the Appointment Committee shall conduct check procedure to ensure whether registered candidates meet general and special requirements. In accordance with the Rulebook on Unified Procedures for Recruitment, Selection and Appointment of Civil Servants, it shall conduct written testing afterwards (Article 20 paragraph 2 of the Rulebook). Upon completion of testing, the Appointment Committee shall conduct a discussioninterview, with the candidates who have reached the right to the discussion interview (Articles 26 and 27 of the Rulebook). Upon completion of the whole procedure, the Appointment Committee Chairman shall notify the list of successful candidates, in order of their success, and recommendation on the selection of candidate (Article 29 of the Rulebook). The Appointment Committee Chairman shall submit the list of successful candidates, including the complete documentation, to the Agency (Article 29 paragraph 3 of the Rulebook). What does the Agency do upon acceptation of the list of successful candidates and complete documentation from the Appointment Committee, and who issues the Ruling on Employment of a civil servant? Upon acceptation of complete documentation, the Agency reviews application of the Rulebook in each and every concrete case. If the Agency ascertains that selection procedure has been conducted accordingly to the Rulebook, it shall propose employment of a civil servant to the Head of a Civil Service Body, in written (Article 30 paragraph 1 and 2 of the Rulebook). If the Agency assesses that there has been breaches of he provisions of the Rulebook, it shall refuse to confirm the selection and it shall forward the case file to the Civil Service Appeals Board, for final decision-making (Article 30 paragraph 3 of the Rulebook). Who issues the Ruling on employment of a civil servant? The ruling on employment shall be issued by the Head of a Civil Service Body, on recommendation of the Agency (Article 31 paragraph 1 of the Rulebook). The Civil Service Body Head is obliged to issue the Ruling on Employment within seven days from the day of acceptation of the recommendation. The Civil Service Body Head may refuse to issue the Ruling on employment, should he/she thinks that recruitment rules and procedures have not been followed. The Civil Service Body Head is then obliged to, within additional three days deadline, submit to the Agency explanation refusal in written (Article 31 paragraph 2 of the Rulebook). What happens if the Head refuses to issue the Ruling on employment?

5 Then the Agency summons again the Appointment Committee. The appointment committee, in the repeated procedure, shall consider the reasons for refusal to issue the ruling on employment (Article 32 of the Rulebook). If the Appointment Committee evaluates that reasons for refusing were justified, the recruitment procedure shall be null then, and the Agency shall advertise the open competition again (Article 33 of the Rulebook). If the Appointment Committee, in the repeated procedure, evaluates that reasons for refusing to issue the Ruling on employment were unjustified, Agency shall issues the Ruling on employment, which fully replaces the ruling issued by the Head of a Civil Service Body (Article 34 of the Rulebook). The Head of a Civil Service Body has right to launch an appeal to the Civil Service Appeals Board, against the Ruling on employment, issued by the Agency (Article 35 of this Rulebook). 2. Selection and Appointment Who conducts Selection and Appointment of civil servants? The Government appoints the senior officials within the Civil Service bodies (Assistant Minister, Secretary to the Ministry, Head of the Administrative Organisation, Deputy and Assistant Head of the Administrative Organisation) on the basis of open competition (Article 48 paragraph 1 of the Law). The Government passes the Ruling on Appointment upon proposal of the Agency (Article 48 paragraph 2 of the Law). The selection and appointment procedure shall be conducted the same as procedure of recruitment of civil servants from Point 1 of this Explanatory Note. 3. Transfer What is transfer and when it may happen? Transfer implies direction of an employee from Civil Service Body to another Civil Service Body, due to the increased scope of activities, should the officials who manage the activities of these bodies agree upon that (Article 54 paragraph 1 of the Law). The time for which an employee may be directed to another Civil Service Body is the period while the conditions for the transfer last, and at longest for three months in one year. The employee his rights, duties and responsibilities from the employment with the body from which he is transferred (Article 54 paragraph 2 and 3 of the Law). A civil servant may be temporarily transferred without his consent to a position outside of the residence of the Civil Service body where he is employed, for the period of no longer than six months within two years. After expiration of the period mentioned in the paragraph 1 of this Article, the employee continues to work at the same position where he had been working before he was deployed outside of the Civil Service body residence (Article 55 of the Law).

6 However, transfer, taken from formal and legal side, is neither recruitment nor selection or appointment. Transfer is an exception, by which an employee may be temporarily deployed to the working position in another Civil Service Body, without conducting the recruitment procedure. It is important to know that transfer has no similarities with earlier establishment of working relations on the basis of the agreed take over. The agreed take over category has ceased to exist in the RS positive legislation, so it is recognized neither by the CSL nor by the Labor Law. 4. Redundant civil servants Should there occur a reduction in the number of selected or appointed officials within a Civil Service body, due to the change of the organisation and methodology of work, or due to scaling down of activities or their cessation, the selected or appointed officials and the other employees shall be deployed to the positions within the same or within the other Civil Service body, which correspond to their professional qualifications. The decision on deployment of the civil servants is passed by the body which selected or appointed them, or by a chief executive of the Civil Service body where the civil servant is deployed (Article 56 paragraph 1 and 2 of the Law). Should a civil servant not accept the position to which he is deployed, his/her employment shall terminate (Article 56 paragraph 3 of the Law). Should it not be possible to deploy a civil servant in accordance with the paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, the body, i.e. the chief executive mentioned in the paragraph 2 of this Article, shall pass a decision by which it is established the termination of that civil servant's employment. It follows from the above mentioned, that a civil servant who may not be deployed in terms of Article 56 paragraph 1 and 2, is redundant; and a civil servant, who does not accept deployment to another working position is not redundant, but his employment is to be terminated. 5. Ceasing of duties The Civil Service Agency shall, in line with Article 26 paragraph 2 of the Decree on Principles of Internal Organisation and Systematisation of Working Positions in the RS Civil Service, prepare the Rulebook on Grading, Promotion, Performance Appraisal and Ceasing Civil Servants of Duties. What is ceasing a civil servant of duties? Proposed settlement, as per the Law, defines ceasing of duties as a procedure by which a civil servant lose the civil service status, due to getting out of the civil service. Shall transition to a new duty or transition to a higher position as a result of in service promotion be considered as ceasing of duties?

7 The civil servant s transition from one position to another, or the civil servant s transition from one grade level to another as a result of in service promotion, shall not be considered as ceasing of duties. The civil servant s termination of employment, due to fulfillment of the requirements for retirement, shall not be considered as ceasing of duties. Who can initiate the ceasing of duties procedure? The cease of duties procedure may be initiated: 1. upon the civil servant s request, 2. upon the Government s decision, for the civil servants who have been selected and appointed by the Government, with previously obtained opinion of the Agency, and 3. on the initiative of the Chief of a Civil Service Body. Who shall pass the decision on ceasing a civil servant of duties? The RS Government shall pass the Act on Cessation for chief executives. To be more concrete, the RS Government shall pass the Act on Cessation for the following civil servants: Assistant Minister, Secretary to the Ministry, Head of Administrative Unit and Administrative Organisation, Deputy and Assistant Head of Administrative Unit and Administrative Organisation, Chief Inspector and the Expert Adviser appointed by the Government. The other civil servants shall be ceased of duties by the Agency, on recommendation of the Chief Executive of a Civil Service Body. Is it allowed to launch an appeal against the Act on Cessation? It is allowed to launch an appeal against the Act on Cessation a Civil Servant of Duties. The appeal is to be submitted within 15 days from the day of reception of the Act. Who decides on the appeal declared against the Act on Cessation? The Civil Service Appeals Board shall decide on the appeal against the Act on Cessation. The Board s decision is final one. Against the Board s decision, the administrative dispute may be conducted. Attachment: Linkage act Director Dragomir Kutlija