asked the Minister for the Public Service the facilities that are available to civil servants for doing graduate or post-graduate studies; the circumstances in which they may be availed of; the grades to which they are extended; and why such facilities are not extended to all employees of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Civil Servants Graduate Courses.
43.
The following facilities are available to civil servants to enable them to pursue graduate and post-graduate studies.
Special leave with pay is allowed where an officer is sent on a course which is considered to be of immediate and specific benefit to him in his work to an extent which justifies the expenditure involved. In some cases additional payments, for example, for travelling and subsistence, may be made. Where an officer has already got financial assistance towards such a course, by way, for instance, of studentship or scholarship, and his Department are prepared to release him, leave with less than full pay may be allowed.
To attend university examinations time off with pay is given. Course and examination fees are refunded, subject to certain conditions, to civil servants who, outside official hours, for example, through night lectures, pursue courses accepted as relevant to their employment in the civil service.
If an officer applies for limited time off to attend lectures of a relevant course his application is granted as far as possible. The extent to which he will be freed of the obligation to make up this time will depend on the degree of relevance which the course is adjudged to have to his civil service position.
In some circumstances where special leave with pay is not considered justifiable civil servants may be granted special leave without pay for relevant courses where the employing Department are prepared to release the officer. The type of situation envisaged is where an officer wishes to pursue or complete a primary degree or post-graduate course or to study for course examinations.
The facilities which I have outlined are available to all grades. In addition, there are a limited number of schemes where staff are selected and sent to university or other third-level institutions with a view to obtaining qualifications or expertise in fields in which existing needs are not satisfied. These schemes are usually confined to the staff in the particular area involved or to members of grades which are most likely to be in line for the kind of duties for which the qualifications or expertise would be most useful. Apart from the special schemes referred to, all the facilities outlined are available to civil servants in the Department of Posts and Telegraphs on the same basis as that which applies to the rest of the civil service.
The remaining questions will appear on tomorrow's Order Paper.