LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND PRACTICAL PROCEDURES AND MECHANISMS FOR SELECTION IN SPAIN

Transcription

1 LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND PRACTICAL PROCEDURES AND MECHANISMS FOR SELECTION IN SPAIN By Mr. Jaime Perez de la Cruz Recruitment and Training Deputy Director Public Administration National Institute (INAP) Spain Seminar on Civil Service Recruitement Procedures Vilnius, March 2006 This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein are those of the author, and can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the OECD and its member countries or of the beneficiary countries participating in the Sigma Programme.

2 I. Introduction 1) Volume and Territorial structure. 2) Spanish Civil Service: Career based System vs. Job position system. II. Spanish Civil Service Recruitment System 3) Recent History 4) Types of access 5) Previous actions to recruitment: Human Resources Planning and Competition Publication 6) Main aspects: Minimum conditions, procedure, selection criteria (Boards, tests and merits) III. Trends (March 22) 7) Who recruits? 8) Who is recruited? 9) How is recruitment made? I. Introduction A few characteristics of Spanish public administration must be previously defined to understand how civil servants are recruited. 1) Spanish public administration is decentralized. Most civil servants belong either to regional public administrations (50%) or local (30%). Thus, only 20% (approx public employees) belong to general administration. Even though basic common legislation rules every public administration and its civil servants regulation State (80%) (23%) Autonomous Regions (6%) (49%) Local Entities (14%) (24%) Total ) Spanish Civil service is organised on a career basis instead of job position system, which means: 1 st ) There are two basic models for employment in the core public service in European countries, career-based (France) or position-based (UK). Career based system is organised not on specific jobs but on professional profiles (so called Cuerpos or Professional Bodies ). In Spain, these profiles can be either general profiles (which develop tasks related with horizontal organizational needs, such as human resources, economic-financial management, etc.) or specific profiles (diplomats, state lawyers, architects). General, and sometimes specific, profiles can also be upper profiles or lower profiles (top management profiles, intermediate assistants or support staff). 2

3 2 nd ) Choosing one system or the other has a profound effect on a country s public service culture, and more specifically on how civil servants are recruited. Basically, it will determine: a. How civil servants are recruited, since a general profile or a job profile approach affects knowledge or aptitude requirements. b. Who will recruit them. Career-based system will allow a concentration of processes since a considerable number of job positions related to a professional profile (i.e. assistants) are recruited by a single actor. Considering central administration in Spain, general profiles recruitment will be centralized on a Ministry (Public Administration Ministry through Public Administration National Institute-INAP) and specific profiles will be recruited by decentralized Departments (Foreign affairs, Home Office, Defence, Justice, Economy, etc.). 3 rd ) It must be understood, and following other countries trends, that career-based system is not pure, since there are also job-position characteristics. a. Thus, there are two main types of public employees: Traditional civil servants (organised on professional profiles ), and labour employees, which are recruited for specific job positions. Considering central administration (Ministries, Military, Police and Judiciary, Social Security), about public employees are labour contracts out of b. Additionally, initial recruitment and promotion is based on career-system tradition, but others approach to a job position system, such us specific appointment to different positions (which also requires recruitment principles to choose the best candidate). Recruitment (External access) Internal Promotion Job appointment (Professional access) Career based X X Job based X II. Spanish Civil Service Recruitment System 1) Recent History 1 st ) Long tradition ruling access to public service. Spain is a relatively young democracy, even though there is a long tradition on ruling civil service (since 1825) and equal access or stability to public service. It must be stressed 1918 Act which specifically ruled career based system, access and stability on employment. In 1964, under Franco ruling, trends related to job positions system where included being strengthened on Act 30/1984, still in force. 2 nd ) 2006 Project. Nowadays there is a Draft Law to rule Civil Service in Spain. In fact it is expected to be on Parliament by June. 2) Types of Access 1 st ) External access, promotion (internal promotion), access to specific jobs (professional promotion)1. There are three different ways to recruit a candidate, and as it will be explained later, selection criteria will be modified depending on the recruitment system: 1 See graphics shown at next page. 3

4 a. External access. A candidate can be chosen through open competitions to become a civil servant. Recruitment is based on career system basis and he or she becomes part of a professional profile (i.e.: Civil Managers). Every professional profile belongs to a group (A, B, C, D, E) depending on qualification required for access. Additionally, every civil servant related to a Group might compete for different job positions (Civil Manager, Group B, might compete for job positions on levels 18 to 26). Finally, every group accesses to a starting job position (level 18 out of 30 if a candidate becomes a Civil Manager, ranking B Group). b. Professional Access. Every civil servant might promote to a different job position, depending on the professional profile where he or she belongs. Thus, a Civil Manager, ranking B Group, might access to job positions 18 to 26 out 30. c. Internal Promotion. Finally, every civil servant might promote to an upper professional profile which will lead him or her to upper job positions. Thus, a Civil Manager, ranking B Group, might access to Civil Administrator Profile, ranking A Group, which will lead him or her to job positions 26 to 30 out of 30. PROFILES GROUPS JOB POSITIONS (A) Civil Administrators A 30 External Access Internal Promotion (B) Civil Managers C B Professional Access (D) Assistants E D QUALIFICATION GROUP MINIMUM JOB LEVEL MAXIMUM JOB LEVEL A B C D E

5 2 nd ) Ordinary and extraordinary processes Recruitment processes or criteria, might also vary depending on whether ordinary o extraordinary circumstances occur. a. Political System changes. Spanish Civil Service System had to go under political changes in different situations that led to extraordinary recruitment processes. (I.e. decentralization process required regional or local entities to accept civil servants recruited by central state which were managing the competences transferred). b. Civil Service Changes. Spanish Civil Service has changed in different occasions. Depending on changes different exceptional measures had to be taken related to recruitment. (I.e. In 1988 a law modification changed which activities had to be taken necessary by civil servants and were thus forbidden to labour employees. Some labour contracts became civil servants under exceptional recruitment processes to adapt to the new situation). c. Temporary jobs which must become steady. Finally, under some circumstances, temporary jobs which are recruited by exceptional measures, have lasted long periods of time and specific procedures had to be taken to become them steady. 3) Previous Steps: Human Resources Planning and Competition Publication 1 st ) Human Resources Planning. Owing to the application of the principle of transparency, information on vacancies in civil services is accessible to everybody. Freedom of information and the resulting opportunity to apply for jobs are therefore guaranteed. There is a publication on January of the competitions planned for the following year setting the number of jobs authorised to be filled in the State administration. The definitive dates of the competitions are subsequently published in the official gazette and on the web. 2 nd ) Competition Publication. Competitions must be published at least in the official gazette. It shall contain at least, the following information: Number of vacancies; composition and number of boards; requirements related with candidates; affirmative provisions related with disabled or promotion; selection criteria (type of tests, knowledge areas required, evaluation criteria); dates and times when tests will take place, etc.) 4) Recruitment: Minimum Conditions, Procedure, Selection Criteria 1 st ) Minimum conditions for recruitment a. On the whole, the selection of officials is highly formalised. It is enshrined in the Constitution (articles 23.2 and 103.3) and in different laws setting out the reference legal basis and in particular the conditions of access. b. Basic principles, thus, are equality (every citizen has the right to equal opportunities in gaining access to employment in the public service-23.2); merit and competence (Rule of law shall guarantee access to official service in accordance with the principles of merit and competence 103.2). c. A clean criminal record is required. d. The nationality condition raises the question of Community citizens access to a national civil service. In principle, the condition does not apply to citizens of Member States of the European Union. However, exceptions may be made for jobs involving the exercise of public authority and aimed at protecting the general interests of the State (diplomats, judicial system, fiscal powers, etc.). e. As regards qualification, different qualification requirements are requested, depending on Group Qualification (A, B, C, D, E) of Professional Profile. A university degree is required for access to the highest category of civil servant. f. The general trend is to abolish age limits in order to avoid accusations of ageism. In general, the minimum recruitment age is 18 years of age. 5

6 2 nd ) Procedure a. Candidates have to pay a symbolic registration fee. The fee varies from EUR 7 to EUR 25 depending on the level of the competition although unemployed or disabled candidates do not have to pay it. b. The equal opportunities principle is applied in order to avoid any form of discrimination during the selection procedure and to accept all applications without any distinction. Special efforts are being made related with disabled candidates. 5% of vacancies are reserved to those, exams may be adapted in order to give the disabled the best possible access to tests, they might even have separate recruitment processes. c. Equality of access of citizens to public vacancies means that there is an on-line registration system that coexists with registration on paper. d. To guarantee equal treatment for all candidates, different measures are taken; i.e Oral exams or reading of writing exams are public: anyone can attend, even another candidate for the same competition, which could help him prepare himself. Multiplechoice tests are evaluated through procedures that guarantee an anonymous evaluation, exam copies for every one and answers for every one. e. Boards are limited by number of vacancies. Thus, they cannot approve a number of candidates greater to vacancies related. There is no list of elegibles. f. Once process is finished vacancies are offered and are selected by candidates, depending on their position. 3 rd ) Selection Criteria: Boards, Tests and Merits Board a. Recruitment is developed through boards. Generally those boards are not permanent. They are created for every competition among different civil servants. Exceptionally, permanent boards can be created if special conditions occur (massive candidates, etc.) b. Boards generally comprise officials of a grade higher than or at least equal to that of the vacancy. They might have specialists not attached to public administration (psychologists, language experts, etc.) c. Board members must have no family links or other conflict of interest with candidates. Test and Merits (Selection criteria) Selection Criteria EXTERNAL ACCESS OPOSICIÓN = TEST Theory tests Psychotecnic Practice Tests Program Languages INTERNAL PROMOTION CONCURSO = MERITS Interview Recruitment Course Experience Time on Organization Training PROFESSIONAL Qualification ACCESS 6

7 There are three different ways to recruit a candidate, and as it was referred before, selection criteria will be modified depending on the recruitment system: d. Recruitment can be carried out either through tests, evaluation of merits, or both. External access requires tests, not being allowed merit evaluation. Internal promotion will require both criteria (tests and merit), and professional access will adopt, only merit evaluation. e. Candidates are notified of the programme of tests; they are thus questioned on subjects fixed in advance. Generally is required knowledge of public administration concerned (constitutional or administrative ruling, civil service regulation, etc.). f. Multiple-choice tests are used when a high number of candidates appears. g. Written and oral exams are required to evaluate knowledge on subjects considered to be required (orals are required generally only to upper profiles). h. Practice exams must be defined if there is more than one test. i. Psychological tests are commonly used on specific profiles (i.e. police and military). j. As regards language knowledge, mastery of the official language(s) of the country is a legal obligation in most competitions. This is quite relevant to access to regional administrations where cooficial languages coexist (Catalonia, Valencia, Balearic Islands, Basque country or Galician Autonomous Regions). Exams or certifications are required. Foreign languages are required (mainly English) on highest categories, having specific importance on specific profiles (diplomats, international commercial relations, etc.). k. Interview, examination of documents (curriculum vitae, etc), or work experience is not required or considered as a rule. In fact, ruling on recruitment requires tests ( oposiciones ) as the average procedure to recruit civil servants, allowing documents or work experience ( concursos ) as an exceptional procedure. On the opposite, merits are the common rule for professional access. l. Recruitment through compulsory training. Upper profiles usually require a compulsory training activity before becoming civil servants. It can last over a year. 7