Vol. 525 No. 1
2 Mr. McDowell asked the Minister for Finance the steps that are being taken to address the serious staffing crisis in the Civil Service arising from the current 1,794 vacancies; his views on whether current wage levels are sufficient to attract candidates; if he will give the number of civil servants in his own Department and the Civil Service generally who are in receipt of family income supplement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23806/00]
I do not accept there is a staffing crisis in the Civil Service, though problems and pressures are certainly present, along with the broader challenge of recruiting and retaining high quality personnel in a competitive labour market.
The Deputy's reference to 1,794 vacancies in the 15 Departments – deriving from replies to recent parliamentary questions – needs to be put in context. These Departments have a workforce of 22,000 persons, and will always have vacant posts, reflecting gaps between the occurrence of vacancies and the filling of those vacancies. In addition, many outstanding vacancies are new posts and competitions to fill these posts inevitably take time to run.
The Civil Service Commission is responding to market challenges, and has eliminated past shortfalls in the supply of clerical officers to Departments. The bulk of departmental demands for clerical officers, currently amounting to 127 for the 15 Departments, will be satisfied in the very short term. The Commission has responded to other departmental demands by accelerating the throughput of candidates from existing competitions and by holding new competitions.
The starting pay of the two main general service recruitment grades has recently been revised to £12,667 for clerical officers and, depending on age, between £15,536 and £17,880 for executive officers. I consider these figures reasonable, but my Department will monitor their effect on recruitment and retention. The Civil Service has much to offer in the area of non-pay conditions. Family-friendly initiatives such as job-sharing and career breaks are already in place and, subject to talks with the unions, a major work-sharing initiative is expected to be launched next year. Statistics on the numbers of civil servants receiving family income supplement are not available.
I am taken aback by the Minister's response, because whoever wrote it, it was not him. Is it not the case that the Minister said in an address during the summer that the Civil Service was facing an "acute problem"?
When?
I think he said it during an address to the Institute of Personnel during the summer. I do not know who wrote that, but that is the quote given in a newspaper I know the Minister reads all the time, The Irish Times.
I never said that in an interview.
Maybe there is a difference between a staffing crisis and an acute problem, but it is not very clear to me. The bottom line is that we are paying too little for the entry grades. The Minister says he does not have the numbers of civil servants applying for FIS, but it is generally accepted that quite a number are and at this stage a significant percentage of those applying for FIS are civil servants.
A question, please.
Is it reasonable – that was the phrase the Minister used in his reply – for the Civil Service to be paying little more than what fast food restaurants pay at the entry grades?
I think the body I addressed was in Tralee during August or early September. I am not trying to say there is no problem with recruitment due to the buoyant nature of the economy, but everything should be taken in context. The Deputy is old enough to know the way this has changed over the years. I will give my own experience.
With respect, the Minister's experiences are always very entertaining but they are rarely illuminating.
The Deputy should allow the Minister to continue without interruption.
There is an ebb and flow with regard to recruitment to the Civil Service.
Does the Minister accept that there is a problem with low pay in the Civil Service?
The Deputy should be aware that most of his interventions and interruptions are not being recorded because he is not on microphone.
Depending on economic conditions, at various stages during the past 25 to 30 years we were overwhelmed by the numbers of people trying to join the Civil Service. On other occasions, the service experienced difficulties in trying to recruit staff. I am sure this position will obtain in the future. In light of general economic conditions, I recognise that there is difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff within the Civil Service. However, that problem is not confined to the Civil Service.
As the Deputy is aware, changes to any of the Civil Service grades will have a knock-on effect throughout the wider public service. He must take into account the fact that there are advantages to joining the Civil Service that no private employer can offer. Due to buoyant economic conditions, it is not as attractive, perhaps, as it once was for certain people to join the Civil Service. However, the service has many attractions which private employers cannot offer, the most important of which is security of tenure.
The economy is so buoyant at present that many employers, not just the Civil Service, are having difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff.
Does the Minister accept that there is a problem with low pay in the Civil Service? Does he believe it is reasonable for the State to be subsidising Civil Service wages from the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs by way of FIS?
As already stated, I do not have information regarding the number of civil servants who are in receipt of family income supplement. However, the starting salary of £12,267 for a clerical officer or £15,536 for an executive officer, with an established career structure in place for them, is very competitive if a person wants to make a career in the public service. Not everyone wants a career in the public service, but there are those who wish to join the Civil Service because of its established career path and the other advantages it offers. The rates we are paying are very competitive.
We must proceed to Question No. 3.
The biggest problem is that if changes take place at the bottom, they will filter out into the wider public service.
May I ask the Minister—
We are over the time limit for this question. There is a six minute limit on Priority Questions and the Chair has no discretion in that regard. We must proceed to Question No. 3.
I merely wish to ask the Minister if he will send me the figures relating to FIS.
There is no time.
I am not seeking a response now, I simply want him to send them to me.
There is no time. We must proceed to Question No. 3.
It is not possible to provide the information sought by the Deputy.
I ask the Minister to address himself to Question No. 3.
