E. Additional Reading

CIVIL SERVICE SYSTEMS

Civil service organizations exhibit different organizing principles. The four widely accepted principles are:

1. The intricacies of administrative work requires expert knowledge and the organization of a special workforce.

The civil service is now recognized as a profession all over the world, even in countries that previously did not differentiate politics and administration from other kinds of work.

2. Entry into the civil service and subsequent promotions should be based on merit and fitness alone.

While the merit principle is accepted universally, issues often arise about the definition of merit. Many countries hold competitive examinations for recruitment to the managerial posts, but how far these examinations and tests can measure future potential and qualities such as integrity, commitment to duty and impartiality is debatable.

3. The civil service should provide a secure career on a lifetime basis.

In almost all countries, civil service systems provide a secure lifetime career. It is only in rare cases that incoming governments have been known to dismiss officials. The reasons given were usually corruption, unsatisfactory performance and abuse of authority, and the numbers involved were extremely small in relation to the overall size of the civil service.

4. The civil service should strictly adhere to political neutrality.

Civil services usually continue to serve governments, irrespective of how the latter came into power. There are few instances of officials disagreeing with government policies or resigning in protest. In fact, the civil service has been generally ruler dominated and willing to serve all governments, especially when their interests are not threatened. In rare instances where their interests have been threatened, they have recouped their lost position through subsequent regimes.

(Abridged from Rethinking Public Administration: Overview: pp. 69-70)

F. Discussion

Ex. 1. Express your attitude to the following statements. List your pros and cons:

1. "Public organisations are wasteful, private ones are efficient".

2. "Most work in organisations depends on ensemble rather than solo effort."

3. "Professional civil servants are faceless bureaucrats producing an endless stream of paperwork."

Ex. 2. Give your viewpoint on the following questions:

1. A young specialist, apart from possessing profound knowledge of law or economics, is sure to know the theory of public administration. Why?

2. The organisation theory viewы an organisation as bureaucracy, human relations, a structure of subgroups, etc. Why?

3. What is the most adequate system of rewards which should be introduced in a business organisation to attract and motivate employees? Why?

H. Writing

Write a short summary on any new information on the problem under discussion you have found on the Internet or in the press.

Write a short commentary on the problem of mixing in informal groups (common lunch hours, sport group, etc) with your colleagues. List your pros and cons.

Unit 4