Rethinking the Public Service Bargain: The Changing (Legal) Position of Civil Servants in Europe

1. Rethinking the Public Service Bargain: The Changing (Legal) Position of Civil Servants in Europe Astana Economic Forum May 22, 2013 Dr. Caspar Van Den Berg

2. Introduction Point of departure: perceived pressure on the so-called ‘traditional’ public law formulation of the position of CS in various European countries. How does this play out in 12+ European countries? How do countries reconcile 2 opposing sets of demands: • Managerial: effectiveness, efficiency, flexibility, managerial discretion • Weberian: integrity, non-discrimination, rule-based conduct, risk-avoidance and frugality

3. Crossroads of CS employment • Left turn: reinforcing the distinct nature approach: there is a specific character to working for the gvt vis-à-vis working in the private sector • Right turn: reinforcing the harmonization approach: there is (or should be) no fundamental difference between a job performed for the gvt and a job performed for a private corporation.

4. Public Sector Bargains (Hood, 2001; Hood and Lodge, 2006) • SystemicBargains • Consociationalbargain • Hegelianbargain • PragmaticBargains • Schafferianbargain • Hybridbargain • Managerial bargain Hood: A shift is occurringfromSchafferianbargainsto Managerial bargains

5. Crucial points for comparative research • Within each country, there is a terminological challenge when it comes to the definition of gvt personnel, civil servants, and civil servants status. • This challenge multiplies when cross-national comparison is concerned: Civil servant, Beamte, Fonctionnaire, Ambtenaar. • The Civil Servant does not exist: CS as public officials; specify their type of appointment and relation to the state and state power.

6. The Turn to the Right • NL, DK, SV, IT, CH • NL: public law status under pressure because of desire to flexibilise appointments and deprivilege CS. • Social security arrangements have been equalized with the private sector, but: • No actual abolition of the civil service states, rather a revival of attention for the Weberian principles of bureaucracy.

7. Maintaining the Bargain • DE, BE, FR • BE: Vast majority of gvt personnel has a statutory appointment under public law. • Others work on contract basis. This proportion grew until 2005, but is now stable at 27% at federal level. • Labour conditions have been harmonized, but the values such as ethics, impartiality and civil service professionalism have progressively become part to the discussion.

8. The Turn to the Left • East European countries, UK • UK: Traditionally a state without statutory civil service provisions. • Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, inspired by lack of clarity how roles and responsibilities should be fulfilled after NPM-style reforms. • Core values of the civil service are now codified in law. • Contrary to privatizing reforms in IT, SV, DK.

9. Discussion I: Trends in rethinking the Bargain • The discussion about the (legal) position of CS may seem a national debate, but is part of a general debate all across Europe. • No one-directional trend away from the Schafferian and towards the managerial bargain, it’s more complicated! • Cross-national convergence to the middle: distinct nature and harmonization approaches combine.

10. Discussion II • The two sets of demands (material labour conditions AND the values of bureaucracy) have become increasingly independent from one other. • To what extent are Weberian-style labour conditions conditional for high levels of Weberian values of bureaucracy?