COSTA RICA NEWS — Union protection, ample opportunities to file appeals and even fear of superiors are some of the reasons that it can take up to two years (or even more) to fire a bad public sector employee.
Topping the list of lengthy process is the Ministerio de Educación Pública (MEP) – Ministry of Education – where the process is stretched to the limit.
The MEP has 75.000 employees that come under the jurisdiction of the Department of Disciplinary Affairs when things go bad.
Zeidy Palma, head of the Disciplinary Affairs says the process is long because there always are appeals. According to Palma, the major cause of disciplinary action leading to dismissal are truancy by the teachers, complaints that increasing every year.
The public service sector in the country is about 300.000 people. Of that some 116.000 public service employees belong to the Servicio Civil (Civil Service) of the Poder Ejecutivo (central government). The balance are public sector employees of autonomous state institutions and agencies, such as ICE, AyA and RECOPE.
At Civil Service the process to fire a bad employee is about six months, a process that takes into account a full investigation, and waiting and appeal periods.
Gerardo Bogantes, director of Legal Affairs at the Ministerio de Trabajo y Seguridad Social (MTSS) – Ministry of Labour and Social Security, says then there are cases where the process can take even longer, if it goes before the civil courts.
According to Bogantes, the fact that some public institutions have a labour relations board that emit criteria for dismissal, stretches out the process even further.
“Firing a bad public official is a chore. It is very cumbersome and come into play union privileges, collective agreements, appeals,” says Roberto Gallardo, former Minister of Planning.
According to the Tribunal de Servicio Civil (Civil Service Court), from January to September this year it upheld 78 of 98 cases of dismissal.
The main causes of disciplinary action are offences of slander, aggression against peers and superiors, actions jeopardizing the security of the institution or missing work without permission, according to Court records.
The director of Civil Service says that 99% of the public employees receive “very good to excellent” in their evaluation reports.
Albino Vargas, head of the Asociación Nacional de Empleados Públicos y Privados (ANEP), one of the largest public service unions in the country, recognizes that the public sector needs a new instrument to measure the performance of officials.
“We advocate a change in the way of measuring the efficiency and effectiveness of a public official, which serves to banish mediocrity and highlight excellence,” he said.
According to Vargas, to that end they formed a coalition called “Patria Justa” and are in talks with the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) – University of Costa Rica, to propose a new scoring model for the public sector, one that is strict and rigorous.
Joining the ANEP in forming the Patria Justa are the unions and organizations of the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), the Refinadora Costarricense de Petróleo, and Sindicato de la Junta de Administración Portuaria y de Desarrollo Económico de la Vertiente Atlántica (Sintrajap).
A study in 2013 by the Ministry of Planning, notes that the average monthly wage in the public sector is more than twice the average wage in the private sector.
Source: Nacion.com
