RECRUITMENT STRATEGY IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE

1. RECRUITMENT STRATEGY IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SERVICE AND ADMINISTRATION 13 JUNE 2006

2. OVERVIEW • Context • Legislative and PSHR Framework • HR Planning Framework

3. CONTEXT “What informs HR Recruitment?” Finding the Right people, with the Right skills/competencies, at the Right time, for the Right place within the organisation/Public Service.

4. CONTEXT (cont) What constitutes an HR Recruitment Strategy? • Planning for needs of employees based on Supply and Demand • Taking cognisance of challenges in current recruitment practices including shortages of scarce skills and any review recommendations on recruitment • Job Analysis differs depending on the life cycle of the organisation whether it is in the embryonic, developmental, mature or decline phase

5. LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK • The Constitution, 1996 • Employment Equity Act, 1998 • Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 • Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 • Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 • Skills Development Act, 1998 • Immigration Act, 2002

6. PSHR LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK (cont) • Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 • Government Employees Pension Law, 1996 • Labour Relations Act, 1995 • Public Service Act, 1994, as amended. • Public Service Regulations, 2001 • Collective Bargaining Council agreements • Directives issued by the MPSA

7. PSHR LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK (cont) • General Policy issues • White Paper on Human Resource Management in the Public Service, 1997 • White Paper on Affirmative Action in the Public Service,1998 • Open employment system considering redress and equity • Increased competition (Open, targeted and internal) • Requirements should not be based primarily on educational qualifications, but also on skills and experience

8. PSHR LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK (cont) • Only job-related criteria to be applied during selection • Widest possible number of people in target group to be reached in most cost-effective manner • Skills searches (head hunting) may be used in certain circumstances • Legislative framework determines the rules/processes for Recruitment; Selection and Retention

9. PUBLIC SERVICE ACT, 1994 • Original powers to appoint, promote or transfer rest with departments (Section 9) • All persons who qualify must be considered (Section 11) • Evaluation of candidates must be based on training, skills, competence, knowledge and the need to achieve representativeness of the SA-people, specifically according to race, gender and disability (Section 11)

10. RECRUITMENT PRACTICE • Casual employees may be appointed for not longer than 12 months • Appointments, transfers and promotions may be on probation for 12 months • Advertising • Departments must ensure that vacancies are so advertised that the entire pool of potential candidates, especially persons historically disadvantaged is reached • An advertisement must reflect the inherent requirements of a post, the post title and core functions

11. RECRUITMENT PRACTICE (cont) • Specific measures on advertising: • Senior Management Service: • Must be advertised nationwide • Other posts: • At least within the department. Optionally within Public Service and/or outside, nationally or locally • Option applied to be informed by scarcity of skills, location of workplace, particular job requirements, need for career progression amongst own employees

12. RECRUITMENT PRACTICE (cont) • Post may be filled without advertising - • Absorb excess staff on equal grading • Absorb employees appointed under AA-programme • Effect lateral transfers (multi-skilling, organisational effectiveness) • Deploy heads of departments (Section 3B) • Employment agencies may be utilised • Head-hunting may take place, but preferably to supplement advertising process

13. RECRUITMENT PRACTICE (cont) • Advertising within the Public Service is done by means of a weekly bulletin issued by the DPSA • Applications to be made on a standard form • In addition to advertising, departments could use other methods of recruitment: • Study assistance • Recruitment of foreign workers (e.g. Health, Housing) • Exchange programmes • Deployment through Special Interventions • Selection decisions are taken by departments. A selection committee must be used

14. SELECTION RULES/PROCESS • For the SMS, Cabinet approved that DPSA embarks on a pilot study to validate the competency assessments and the assessment battery for SMS in the public service. The pilot study results were submitted to Cabinet for a final decision in February 2005 • Cabinet approved that – • Competency-based assessments for the SMS be implemented by departments on a voluntary basis for both selection and staff development purposes

15. SELECTION RULES/PROCESS (cont) • The aim of using competency assessments at SMS level is to enhance and improve - • Recruitment and selection practices • Performance management • Training and development i.t.o targeted interventions and programmes • Career management and succession planning

16. RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES/INITIATIVES • Policy on the Employment of Foreign Nationals • Internships • Leanerships • Mentorship • Sustainable Pool for Middle Managers • Training and Development Programmes • Bursary and Scholarship Programmes

17. RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES/ INITIATIVES (cont) • Provisioning of ICT Assistive Devices for Employees with Disabilities • Memoranda of Understanding with SETAs which operate within the Public Sector to develop transportable qualifications relevant throughout the Public Sector

18. RECRUITMENT CONSTRAINTS • Recruitment in general is not strategically aligned and tends to be transactional in nature • Contractual employment, especially at SMS – level, are not used consistently within a department. The approach raises ethical concerns, grounds for unfair discrimination and limited pool of possible candidates because of non-security of tenure for permanent employees • In general, there is an over-reliance on interviews as a selection technique and under-utilisation of other supplementary selection techniques

19. RECRUITMENT CONSTRAINTS (cont) • Competency Assessments, Qualification and verification checks are done in an inconsistent manner • Selection criteria are poorly defined and do not facilitate the assessment of potential and recognition of prior learning • Proper human resource and employment equity planning rarely underpin recruitment and selection decisions • Members of selection committees are not sufficiently representative and/or are prepared or capacitated for their roles

20. RECRUITMENT CONSTRAINTS (cont) • People with disabilities are significantly under-recruited in relation to their labour market availability • The application of the merit principle is predominantly conventional and not adequately focussed on potential and competency

21. RECRUITMENT CONSTRAINTS (cont) • The use of information technology to streamline and monitor the recruitment and selection processes is limited • Lack of deployment of scarce talent within the Public Sector • Lack of accurate and standardised information to measure efficiency ofrecruitment

22. HR PLANNING FRAMEWORK • HR Planning (includes Retention Strategies and Succession Planning) • Transactional HR • Maintenance HR • HR Development • HR MIS NB: DPSA has advertiseda CD:HRP to oversee this evolving function

23. HR PLANNING • Derives from departmental strategic and service delivery improvement plans • Informs the following: • Recruitment and retention • Succession Planning • Skills Needed • Employment equity imperatives • Performance management • Informs Transactional HR Policies • Employee wellness and Quality of Work Life

24. HR DEVELOPMENT • HR Development Strategy for the Public Service 2002-2006 focuses on the following areas: • Learnership Programmes • Internship Programmes • Mentorship Programmes • Scarce Skills Programmes

25. LEARNERSHIP PROGRAMME • PSETA was established in 2002 and its primary function is to develop learnerships for the Public Service • To date the PSETA has identified 8 learnerships and an additional 5 learnerships are registered by other SETA’s in the Public Service. • MoU’s have been signed for joint training • The learnership programme is aimed at reducing unemployment amongst the youth and to fast track skills development in critical areas

26. LEARNERSHIP PROGRAMME (cont) • Cabinet approved a minimum number of learners and interns to an equivalent of at least 5% of department’s establishments for 2003/09 • The 8 learnerships comprise the following: • National certificate in Public Sector Accounting • National Certificate: Public Administration Practitioner level 3 • Project Management • National Certificate in Information Technology systems development

27. LEARNERSHIP PROGRAMME (cont) • Secretarial Administration • Human Resource management and support • National Certificate in Local Employment and Skills Development practices • Inspectorate and Enforcement Services • During 2005/6 a total of 3050 learners participated nationally

28. THE INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME • The aim with the programme is to enable unemployed graduates to obtain work experience • To date an internship guide has been developed and issued to the departments • For the period 2005/6 a total of 2995 interns have received work place experience in various fields in the Public Service

29. CHALLENGES • The employment of learners is subject to open recruitment • Correct utilisation of learners by departments • Solution is to absorb employees from learnerships in funded vacancies below salary level 6 without advertising to have ready available skills

30. MENTORSHIP PROGRAMME • This programme is aimed at addressing capacity and skills gaps • A Mentorship guide has been developed and circulated to the departments, • SAMDI has developed a training programme and an induction programme but implementation has been slow in this area • As part of the process of exchange of expertise a partnership has been entered into with the Indian Government on therecruitment of mentors

31. SCARCE SKILL STRATEGY • The strategy is aimed at redirecting training and development initiatives to scarce skill areas • The Public Service has an oversupply of some skills and undersupply of others in spite of the 7.8 million of unemployed people in SA.(Stats SA 2002) • The following critical skills have identified as the most pressing: • Engineering

32. SCARCE SKILL STRATEGY (cont) • Information Technology • Project Management • Financial management • Supply Chain Management • Tendering Procedures • The above have been highlighted as the priority skills to be focused on by the JIPSA initiatives.

33. CONCEPT OF THE SUSTAINABLE POOLS • Development of pools of high potential people towards predetermined sets of competencies • Their development is not tied towards specific jobs or roles • These individuals are to be enrolled in stretching developmental interventions

34. OBJECTIVE OF THE SUSTAINABLE POOLS • Provide challenging, growth-oriented career opportunities • Equip human capital admitted to the scheme with the requisite competencies to enter the senior management level • Make employment in the Public Service more attractive for “high-flyers”

35. Conclusion THANK YOU