Personnel – Civil Service
Important Terms / Concepts / Topics
Kaufman’s cycles -- Neutral Competence, Executive Leadership, Representativeness –
and what they mean
Economics and the formation of the U.S. Constitution
Evolution of Public Service: Virginia Gentlemen, Jackson and common man, patronage,
etc.
Spoils system and George Washington Plunkitt
President Garfield and the Pendleton act,
Hatch act
Assembled and unassembled examination, position classification, the General Schedule
Veteran’s preference, affirmative action. EEO, Comparable worth
OPM, Merit System Protection Board, SES
Whistle blower, collective bargaining, RIF
Evolution of Public Service
Era of Elites (1730-1829).
Era of the Common Man (1830-1883).
Era of Reform (1884-1906).
Era of Efficiency (1907-1932).
Era of Administrative Management (1933-1960).
Era of Professionalism (1961-1977).
Era of Civil Service Reform (1978-1991).
Current era: Government by “Citizens, Experts and Professionals”
Herbert Kaufmann
Cycles of Personnel Theories
Neutral Competence
Executive Leadership
Representativeness
Era of Elites (1730-1829).
Charles Beard: Economic Interpretation of the Constitution
Most problems with Articles of Confederation were economic
Revolutionary war bond defaults
Different currencies
Interstate Tariffs
Shay’s Rebellion
Economics and the U.S. Constitution
One national currency
No interstate tariffs
Federal government has the power to regulate interstate commerce
A stronger national government
To control uprisings against the powerful
New national government required to pay all debts incurred by old government
Government by Gentlemen:
Educated and Economic Elite
Republic, not a democracy
Only the House elected by the people
Constitutional dispute over voting requirements
Unresolved and left to the states
The Virginia Gentlemen
1. George Washington
2. John Adams
3. Thomas Jefferson
4. James Madison
5. James Monroe
6. John Quincy Adams
Era of the Common Man (1830-1883)
Andrew Jackson
A rough hewn Frontiersman
“Gentlemen” were aghast at his presidency
Government jobs were “so plain and simple” that any average person could do it.
“Introduced” the era of political patronage
And the spoils system
Political Patronage
the use of state resources to reward individuals for their electoral support.
The Spoils System
(“To the Victor Belong the Spoils”)
Patronage
From the 1830s to the 1880s (and beyond)
Those working for the party got government jobs.
Campaign contributors got government contracts.
All is still true today, but not as explicit
Ambassadorships
County Sheriff
George Washington Plunkitt:
“Honest Graft
Era of Reform (1884-1906):
Assassination of James A. Garfield
Sworn into office on Friday, March 4, 1881
(Before the 20th amendment in 1932)
Assassinated July 2, 1881 by Charles J. Guiteau
Mentally unstable and disgruntled by failed efforts to secure a federal post,
Civil Service Reform (Pendleton) Act
1883
Response to Garfield Assassination
And also constant pressure by Civil Service Reform movement
Movement began in 1870s
Model was neutral professional service of Great Britain
Pendleton Act
Created the Civil Service Commission to administer a partial merit system.
Classified the federal service by grades to which appointments were made based on the
results of a competitive examination.
It made it illegal for federal political appointees to be required to contribute to a
particular political party.
Civil service system operated to 1978
Era of Efficiency (1907-1932)
Civil Service Commission began job classification
Based on Frederick Taylor’s Scientific Management
There is one best way to do a job
And one set of skills for a job
The match between the two can be measured by an exam
Civil Service System
Goals:
Kaufman’s neutral competence
Hiring people with skills to match the job
No political distortion
Tactics
Position description / classification
Skill based examination
Protection from political pressure (job security)
Position Classification
Classification is more than description
Knowledge job requires
Level of difficulty
Supervisory responsibilities
Important for setting pay level as well as skills required by job
The General Schedule (GS)
15 (later more) levels of pay ranges based on position classification
GS 1-8 basic / Clerical
College graduates GS 5 and above
Master’s degree GS 7 and above
GS 10 and above requires managerial experience
(Later supergrade GS 16-18)
Applicant Examinations
Assembled examination
Written test
Administered at numerous cities around the country
Used mostly for lower positions
Unassembled examination
Mostly GS 9 Plus
Comprehensive resume plus references
For position openings, traditional
Ranked list
Unranked list
Select among top 3
Veteran’s preference included in ranking
Continuing Evolution of the Public Service
5. Era of Administrative Management (1933-1960).
The federal government got bigger and the roles of administrators expanded.
Brownlow Commission and rise of EOP
Kaufmann’s Executive leadership
6. Era of Professionalism (1961-1977).
New government responsibilities
government workforce at all levels becomes more specialized
Remember Stages of Administrative Development
1st stage: revenue collection, expenditures, debt management, maintenance of internal
law and order, defense, foreign affairs
2nd stage: agriculture and trade, created catchall departments
3rd stage: old functions received new departments, human welfare
4th stage: science and technology, energy, the environment, economic planning
Executive Leadership: Partisan politics never far away
Franklin Roosevelt
He and aides distrusted decades of control by conservatives
Fear supported by early Supreme Court Decisions
Most New Deal programs lodged in brand new agencies
FDR Administration populated those agencies with program supporters (liberals)
Eisenhower – a moderate course
Disappointed Republican supporters
Taft wing of Republicans wanted to rescind the New Deal
Kennedy and Johnson continued New Deal Policies
LBJ’s Great Society
Similar to New Deal enacted multiple new programs
Model Cities and Urban Renewal
Medicare
War on Poverty
Richard Nixon
In Policies, middle of the road
In politics, very partisan
“Because of the rape of the career service by the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations
... this Administration has been left a legacy of finding disloyalty and obstruction at
high levels while those incumbents rest comfortably on career civil service status."
Can’t fire, but can transfer to Timbuktu or Alaska.
Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton
Moderate in appointments
Ronald Reagan
Most partisan president in recent decades
(also one of the most effective)
Too early to tell about Bush and Obama administrations
Era of Civil Service Reform (1978-1991).
Civil Service Reform Act of 1978
attempt to redesign the federal personnel system to reconcile effective management with
political responsiveness.
Civil Service Reform of 1978
Abolished Civil Service Commission
Replaced with
Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB)
Delegated Personnel administration to agencies
Established Senior Executive Service
Senior Executive Service (SES)
Concept – most experienced civil servants
Paid more
Generalists -- can be moved from agency to agency
Can be fired
a pay grade in the civil service somewhat analogous to the ranks of general or admiral
in the U.S. armed forces.
U.S. Government Personnel Issues
Whistleblowers
Equal Employment Opportunity, Affirmative Action, Comparable Worth
Unions and Collective Bargaining
Political Rights / Participation
Recruitment of top talent
Whistleblower
An employee raising a concern about an organizational practice
Might be fraud / corruption
Or simply dangerous or sloppy
E.g., airport x-ray scanners don’t work or misused
Internal versus external
Internal acceptable but may be ignored
External may be viewed as traitor
Martyrs promoting accountability to public?
Or “tattle tale” or snitches?
Constant fear of retaliation
Legal protections vary according to the subject matter and the state
National security versus environmental protection
Arizona versus Texas Versus California
Equal Employment Opportunity, Affirmative Action, Comparable Worth
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
Equal Opportunity based on what criteria?
Equal Opportunity or Equal Results
Affirmative Action versus the dreaded QUOTA
Comparable Worth
Are pay schedules impacted by a history of prejudice
Current State of Equal Opportunity Employment
Although public organizations have made great strides, minorities are still largely
excluded from the middle and upper ranks of management.
Women continue to earn less on average than men for comparable work.
Current State of Equal Opportunity Employment
ComparableWorth: designed to equalize pay across groups for those performing
comparable duties.
“hitting the glass ceiling.”
Representation of women in the Senior Executive Service has increased steadily while
representation by minority men has not increased nearly as fast.
A Policy Role for Social Equity?
Representative bureaucracy:
the demographic composition of the public workforce should reflect that of American
society.
Many policy choices made by middle management and lower
Street level bureaucracy
So representative bureaucracy for representative decisions
Active versus symbolic representation
Veterans Preference
5 point bonus on exams (10 point bonus if disabled)
Preference for reasons other than job qualifications, similar to affirmative action
Closely monitored by veterans groups and hard to change
Some preferences less applicable to GS 9 and above positions.
Does not apply to the SES
Unions, Collective Bargaining
Unionization declining in private sector
Most strongly associated with mining and manufacturing, less with retail
Unionization growing in public sector
40% of public sector employees represented by unions
Highest at local level
Police, fire, teachers
Fire Department, City of New York (FDNY)
The Department's lieutenants, captains, battalion chiefs, deputy chiefs, medical officers
and supervising fire marshals are represented by the Uniformed Fire Officers
Association (UFOA)
Regular firefighters and fire marshals are represented by the Uniformed Firefighters
Association (UFA)
Both are locals of the International Association of Fire Fighters
Fire Alarm Dispatchers are represented by the Fire Alarm Dispatchers Benevolent
Association.
EMTs, paramedics and fire protection inspectors are represented by other unions.
Police Department, City of New York (NYPD)
Represented by the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association of the City of New York
Collective Bargaining
Negotiating for wages and working conditions is the union’s primary purpose.
Most effective tool is the strike
But governments claim sovereignty and most do not recognize the right to strike
PATCO Strike in 1981
Strike Alternatives
Some governments ignore bans against strikes
Too problematic to fire workers and train new ones.
Also slow downs, sick-ins, etc.
Work to the Rule
Union Issues Combine Political and Managerial
Department of Homeland Security
Creation delayed by Bush Administration insistence on banning unions
Argued agency needed maximum flexibility
Government Workers and Political Involvement
Hatch Act
Law enacted in 1939 to prohibit civil servants from taking activist roles in partisan
campaigns.
Could not make political contributions, work for a political party or campaign for a
particular candidate.
Federal Employees Political Activities Act
1993 liberalization of the Hatch Act.
Allowed federal employees to run for office in nonpartisan elections and to contribute
money to campaigns in partisan elections.
Hatch Act (1939)
Persons below the policymaking level in the executive branch must abstain from "any
active part" in political campaigns.
An amendment on July 19, 1940 extended coverage to state and local employees whose
salaries include any federal funds.
Hatch Act perhaps needed at the time
But a severe restriction on political freedom of government employees
Could not donate money or work on campaigns
Changing times and greater emphasis on individual liberty led to demand for change
1993 liberalization