Chief Minister Clears The Air Regarding Daily Paid Workers
Chief Minister and Minister of Finance the Honourable Ralph T. O'Neal has sought to put to rest rumours that he has direct influence over the appointment of government workers. During a press conference last week, he went through great detail to explain the process for employment of daily paid workers, which has been a bone of contention for quite a while.
On the government payroll, there are three main categories of persons who are paid salaries or wages or pensions - the pensioners, the permanent employees and the daily paid employees. Daily paid workers are temporary, although some may have been working for 12 or 15 years and work on a daily basis. They are recognized in the Pension Act and after seven years of work and they retire due to sickness or age, they have an option to take either a monthly payment or a one-time gratuity. Over the years, a problem has arisen where some people have been working, but due to certain circumstances, no record can be found of the time they actually started to work. Government has had to get them to swear affidavits as to the time they started, so that they could benefit from their gratuity.
To correct this, the Ralph O'Neal administration some time ago introduced a "Non-established Employment Requisition Form". "So, I think it is incumbent upon me to clear the air on what seems to be a growing misconception with regard to the employment of daily paid workers, that is workers who are not on the permanent establishment," Hon. O'Neal told reporters. He noted that members of the government workforce who are on the permanent establishment are employed through a process overseen by the Personnel Department. The process includes public advertisements and interviews with the respective Departments and the Public Service Commission. The PSC makes recommendations to the Governor, who then makes the appointment. As it relates to the employment of daily paid workers, the Chief Minister said all such posts are previously approved by the Legislative Council under each Department's budget estimates, under the section called "wages". There are daily paid workers in the Public Works Department, Agricultural Department, Public Health, Education, Peebles Hospital and there are the messengers and cleaners in the various Departments etc.
He pointed out that each position is advertised publicly and posted in the Labour Department when vacancies arise. The respective Departments will conduct interviews for short-listing of candidates and make recommendations for appointments to the Ministry of Finance using the Non-established Employment Requisition Form. All recommendations are submitted to the Ministry from the Heads of Departments through their Permanent Secretaries and according to Mr. O'Neal, these must be approved by the respective Heads of Departments and the Permanent Secretary.
The Minister went on to explain that this application then goes on to the Budget Unit of the Ministry of Finance, where it is checked to ensure that the position is indeed vacant and to verify that the scale and rate of salary are correct. Once this is verified, the form is passed to the Financial Secretary for approval. The Budget Coordinator would have already signed it and then passed it to the Financial Secretary. After he has signed it, it is then submitted to the Minister of Finance for final approval, before being returned to the Ministry of Finance. The approved form is then returned, with a cover letter from the Ministry of Finance, to the respective Head of Department, with copies sent to Treasury Department and the Chief Auditor. "Of course, a copy remains on file at the Ministry of Finance and we hope that this will remove the difficulties we have had in keeping records of people who will be eligible for a gratuity or pensions," said the Chief Minister. He said from the foregoing, it could be easily deduced that the procedure for the employment of daily paid workers involves decision-making at several levels and the Chief Minister/Minister of Finance is in fact the final stage for approval.
He said it is true to say that the Chief Minister does not have any direct influence on the process as some may want to believe. "I suppose the only influence he may have is if he refuses to sign the form and after it has been approved by the Head of Department, the Permanent Secretary and the Financial Secretary, it would be very difficult for the Chief Minister not to sign it."
"The point I would like to make is: when there are rumours going around that the Chief Minister has such and such a person employed in a Department, it's not true," he declared. He reiterated that there is a process in place, it has been followed and one shouldn't "get the impression that I could put my hands out, haul in people and put them to work in a Department. There's a process that must be followed and I believe in following the process."