Diversity Policies and Practices in the Civil Service: The Philippine Experience

Transcription

1 Diversity Policies and Practices in the Civil Service: The Philippine Experience Assistant Commissioner Mary Ann Z. Fernandez Philippine Civil Service Commission 1

2 The Philippines a country of diverse culture, ethnicity, language and racial origin (Chinese, Indian, American, Asian, English, Spanish) there are 8 major languages and more than 100 sub-languages and dialects 7,000 islands reinforce this diversity 2

3 The paper aims to Explain the policies, practices and initiatives of the Philippine government to address the issues of diversity in the workplace Highlight some issues, concerns and recommendations DIVERSITY 3

4 Bigger issues of diversity that should be recognized worsening gap between the rich and the poor 30 families out of approximately 15 million Filipino families own 90% of the national wealth 7 million Filipinos are working in 100 countries all over the world - remittance of about US$8 B is bigger than the total exports of the country of about US$6 B - women trapped in employment situations that are difficult, abusive and unprotected 4

5 Personnel Administration in the Philippines Opportunities for government employment are open to all provided they meet the qualification standards For every position in government, minimum standards are set pertaining to education, training, experience and eligibility requirements Scholarship program (foreign and local) was established to provide educational and other learning opportunities for various levels of personnel Performance evaluation is done every 6 months 5

6 General Policy and Legal Framework The Philippine Constitution states that: No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied the equal protection of the laws. For women, the State upholds the fundamental equality between women and men before the law and recognizes the role of women in nation-building For disabled persons, the State guarantees the establishment of a special agency for their rehabilitation, self-development and selfreliance and their integration into the mainstream of society For indigenous peoples, the State recognizes, respects and protects their rights and ensures the preservation and development of their cultures, traditions and institutions 6

7 Laws and Policies on Diversity Five (5) sectors covered: 1) Women 2) Persons with disabilities 3) Indigenous peoples and ethnic communities 4) Employees in the local governments 5) Public sector unions 7

8 Women The Philippines is internationally recognized for the status accorded to Filipino women Within the Asian region the Philippines is a forerunner in pushing for gender equality and women empowerment particularly in the workplace More than twenty (20) various laws passed to empower women PCSC policies, programs and initiatives for women: 1) flexi-time work schedule 2) a more flexible and expanded maternity leave policy 8

9 Women 3) day care centers in all government agencies 4) affirmative policies e.g., for all vacant positions, there should be men or women nominees; no pregnant women shall be discriminated against on matters of promotion, etc. Committee on Decorum and Investigation (CODI) in all government agencies to ensure proper investigation of sexual harassment cases Administrative Rules on Sexual Harassment Cases 9

10 Women Manual on How to Handle Sexual Harassment Cases Information campaign to promote awareness of the Administrative Rules LAWS Women in Development and Nation Building Act 10% of the police force should be women Solo Parents Welfare Act of

11 Persons with Disabilities Magna Carta for Disabled Persons guarantees that 5% of all casual, emergency and contractual positions in the 3 departments: social welfare and development, health and education. It strongly prohibits: employment discrimination against disabled persons in regard to application, hiring, promotion, compensation and other employment conditions the following acts of discrimination: - limiting, segregating or classifying a disabled job applicant - using qualification standards or selection criteria that tend to screen them out 11

12 Persons with Disabilities Other acts of discrimination: - Providing less compensation or other forms of remuneration and benefits to a qualified disabled employee - Favoring a non-disabled employee over a disabled employee with respect to promotion, training opportunities, study and scholarship grants - Failing to select or administer in the most effective manner employment tests which accurately reflect the skills, aptitude or other factors of the disabled applicant - excluding disabled persons from joining labor unions A major PCSC initiative was the development of a computer-assisted test for visually impaired people in 1999, (CAT VIP). 12

13 Indigenous Peoples and Ethnic Communities In the 60 s and 70 s, the PCSC conferred eligibilities to members of the cultural communities through a testimonial procedure (this process however was abused by some individuals who made false claims of their memberships in certain cultural groups) The PCSC conducted the Cultural Communities Examination (CCE) in 1989, a customized examination that is responsive to cultural groups (this was again stopped in view of the low passing rate and the need to strictly observe the merit and fitness principle) 13

14 Employees in the Local Government Units Major breakthrough: Local Government Code which gave autonomy to LGUs Residency requirements for Local appointive officers, e.g., assessor, accountant, health officer Some concerns especially with treasurers on need for check and balance 14

15 Public Sector Unions EO 180 provides that government employees shall not be discriminated against in respect to their employment by reason of their membership in employees organizations Their employment is not subject to the condition that they shall not join or shall relinquish their membership in organizations At present, there are 1,645 PSUs with 278,115 members from the total of 1.4 million government employees One major concern is the inadequate support and lack of appreciation of management on the benefits of unionism The PSLMC issued a policy which provides the prerogative to the union on the use of 50% of the total savings of an agency 15

16 Strengths of the Philippines on the Issue of Diversity Strong legal and policy framework Strong institutional and support systems e.g. PCSC is independent and has quasi-judicial functions Active involvement of NGOs and CSOs, e.g., a workable partnership insofar as implementation & monitoring of programs and policies are concerned 16

17 Continuing Challenges & Recommendations 1) Need to intensify actions to help women break the glass-ceiling and increase level of participation in the top level decisionmaking positions 2) Need to improve the career mobility of local government employees into national career positions 3) Need to undertake policy study on addressing the dilemma on ensuring a balance between the merit and fitness principle in recruitment and the principle of equity 4) Need to improve the recency and regularity of generating information regarding the five (5) sectors to allow comparison over time and to determine if improvements have been achieved 17

18 Continuing Challenges & Recommendations 5) Need to improve and strengthen the information, education, communication and advocacy on the policies and issues affecting the five (5) sectors 6) Need to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the various laws of the Philippines on diversity 7) Need to undertake advocacy, education and communication activities to introduce the word diversity ; build consensus; and reiterate its benefits and importance, especially in a country with as diverse a culture and origin as the Philippines 18

19 Thank You 19