Government Press Office

Grand Turk

Turks and Caicos Islands

 

Press Release

 

Public Service Reform

The Staffing of TCI Government Ministries

 

For Immediate Release

08^th September 2011

 

 

One of the milestones on the route to elections in TCI is the successful completion of Public Service Reform.  One element of this reform programme takes the form of reviews of the staffing of TCIG Ministries. This Press Notice summarises progress to date on these reviews.

 

The purpose of the reviews is to ensure that the right number of staff are employed in the right place doing the right things at the right time.  This can and has led to the approval of increases in the numbers employed in the Fire and Rescue Service and the Ambulance Service; and temporary increases to clear the backlog in the PRC Office.   But it has also led to suggested reductions in the number of cleaners and night watchmen, and in the numbers employed in the Ministry of Works, some of whose activities might in future be contracted out to the private sector.  Further detail is below.

 

Those public servants who are in areas where jobs may be lost will be very concerned to learn about opportunities for retraining etc.  These are summarised below and further detail will be published as soon as possible.

 

The annex to this Press Notice gives further information about the way in which the reviews are being carried out.

 

The Results of Completed Reviews

 

The Ministry of Border Control and Labour:- The changes are intended to improve processing at borders and integrate the work of enforcement staff, to identify illegal entry and other irregularities, to provide a one stop shop for  applications for visas and citizenship, passports and other legal documents, and to improve services to employers and their staff through advice on employment matters and resolution of disputes. The review team has identified a number of new job designs and improvements to the way in which work is processed.  The recommended changes will lead to the net loss of 8 currently filled posts plus a number of vacant posts. The Ministry is proceeding with implementation and has already achieved the anticipated savings in staff numbers through natural wastage (staff leaving, resignations or removal of temporary posts). 

 

The Ministry of Housing, Works and Utilities:- The review recommends that the servicing and maintenance of government vehicles should be undertaken by a small group of qualified staff who should ensure that the cost of the work (salaries, parts etc. ) are covered by the amount that is charged to each Ministry for the service it provides. This management method is called a Trading Fund and seeks to ensure that the government gets value for money for the work done. Consideration was given to privatising the work as it can be shown that the private sector is a cheaper option but regard was had for safeguarding some of the jobs of existing employees within government.  

 

Similarly the maintenance of government buildings and the repair and maintenance of structures like roads, seawalls and drainage ditches can be undertaken by the private sector. The review recommends that a small team of staff is retained to do minor works but that the majority of larger projects should be offered to the private sector though appropriate tendering and contracts.

 

Both the above options will only be implemented when full assessment has been undertaken of the actual cost of these services and whether the private sector can offer a better and cheaper service.

 

Other parts of the Ministry have been reviewed including the recommendation to move the Housing Department and a greatly strengthened Projects Management Department (PMD) to join up with the planning departments and land management (Crown Land Unit and Survey and Mapping) units of the Ministry of Environment and District Administration.  But a final decision will not be made until this Ministry’s own review is completed.  If all the changes recommended go ahead there will be  some increases in jobs for the Planning Department and Projects Management Department of EMS but about 70 staff will lose their jobs in the EMS works department.  Recommendations have been made to consider offering some of the EMS Departments work (building maintenance for example ) to current employees on a contracted out basis to protect their employment opportunities.

 

Cleaning Services: TCIG owns and rents around 60 buildings and employs staff to clean and maintain the premises. Work is already underway by the Ministry of Housing Works and Utilities to make sure that effective use of these premises is made and that the cost of renting is minimised by moving staff into vacant offices. The cleaning services needed have also been considered and the numbers of cleaning staff and the wages they receive is being reviewed to ensure that the cost of cleaning is also managed effectively.  Ministries are being asked to ensure that they only employ the right number of staff for the size of the premises to be cleaned. This will result in some reductions of staff.

 

Security of Premises:  TCIG employs watchmen to ensure the security of government premises when they are not occupied at night and weekends. Modern technology provides the opportunity to monitor premises through remote surveillance and security alarms and several private sector companies operate in all the islands who can provide these security arrangements.  Consideration is being given to contracting out these services to the private sector.  There may be opportunities for staff currently employed to be re-employed by these private sector operators and will be part of the specification if and when external contracts are offered.  The first stage in the contracting process will be to compare the cost of employing staff directly to the amount that a private operator would charge.

 

 

Opportunities for Retraining etc.

 

Where possible, actual redundancy will be avoided.  Staff affected by a change in one ministry will if possible be given an opportunity to move to a job in another ministry or department.  As noted above, the reviews have so far identified additional jobs in the Fire and Rescue Service for another 29 Fire-fighters and 11 staff in the Ambulance Service.  This movement will require retraining of staff and existing staff will be assisted to get the skills they need.

 

In the case of other staff, those who are over retirement age will go on normal retirement and those approaching retirement will be offered early departure from public service with their normal benefits and some compensation for leaving early. 

 

TCIG has already agreed that those staff over 50 who have been employed since 1992 (and who would otherwise have to wait until age 60 for their NHIB pension) will be given a reduced pension from 55 years of age until they receive the NIB entitlement. 

 

If it is necessary to make younger staff redundant then they will be given a compensation payment based on the number of years of their service. 

 

The changes that are recommended will take some time to be fully developed and implemented. In the meantime the review team are looking at the implications of those changes in respect of employment in the public service, the private sector and the impact that the changes may have on people’s livelihoods and employment prospects.  Discussions between the Department of Labour and the Tourism Association and TCI Invest have already begun to identify ways of enhancing employment opportunities in the tourism industry and other sectors and it is hoped that this will provide opportunities for public servants who may leave the service to find alternative employment.

 

 

ANNEX

 

Public service reform has been at the forefront of the initiatives by the Turks and Caicos Government in seeking to improve the services provided by the public service to citizens of the Turks and Caicos whilst ensuring that the cost of salaries and other allowances are commensurate with the principles of value for money and efficient and effective management of public funds. Currently the public service employs about 2500 staff.

 

The review of the structures of Ministries commenced in early 2011. Each Ministry is being considered in turn, looking at how the various departments are structured and managed and relating the work to be done to the numbers and types of staff that are required to process the policy development and services to customers.

 

As the reviews progress the links with other Ministries, departments and statutory bodies are being considered to make sure that the overall structure of government is sensible and provide for integration of services and processes.  For example, linking the work done currently by the Ministry of Housing, Works and Utilities in respect of roads and urban development with the Planning and Survey departments of the Ministry of Environment and District Administration to ensure effective and efficient planning and use of land and management of contracts for structural development and the improvement in enforcement of building regulations.

 

The reviews are designed to make sure that the right number of staff are employed in the right place doing the right things at the right time.  This is why the reform is referred to as ‘rightsizing’.  In considering the ‘rightsize’ the review team considers whether the work should be undertaken by government.  In many modernised public services work that was once undertaken by government has been placed into the private sector through ‘outsourcing’ or privatisation;  security and cleaning services for example where the private sector can often provide the service more cost effectively.  But this does not mean that these services will be automatically considered for movement to the private sector in TCI.  Consideration is given to whether the private sector is capable of providing that service to a better standard and more cheaply than in government.  There are special circumstances in the family islands in TCI especially which need to be taken to account.  Dental services for example may be difficult to obtain if a private practitioner is not available on island so that’s where government has to make provision or develop an alternative way of providing that service.

 

It is planned to review the main 10 ministries by the end of 2011 and statutory bodies are also currently being reviewed to look at their financial costs; the staffing needs of statutory bodies will also be considered in due course. 

 

Other reviews are in progress in the Ministry of Environment and District Administration looking at how to improve environmental protection and conservation of the nature and natural resources of the islands; Ministry of Finance’s Customs Department and its possible links to immigration; the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Communications to support development of trade and alternative industries as well as the tourist industry.  Later this year the Ministries of Education, Health and Home Affairs will also be reviewed to ensure that enough skilled staff are available to protect the health and welfare of citizens and provide for the islands’ educational needs.

 

The reviews are being undertaken by a team made up of UK advisors and some staff from the Office of Public Service Management who are liaising with the individual ministry management and other advisors in the research.  Staff and management are interviewed to obtain their opinions and make an assessment of the roles, responsibilities and duties they perform. Their experience and that of the review team of other government administrations across the Caribbean and other countries is used to make a technical assessment of the appropriate management models and structures that should apply to TCI’s public service.  When the report is prepared it is reviewed with the Ministry’s management team to seek their agreement and further inputs before it is submitted to the Public Service Reform Steering Group (PSRSG) which comprises the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Permanent Secretaries of Finance, OPSM and the Governor’s Office as well as two members of staff selected from Ministries to represent the views of management and staff.  The PSRSG is asked to review the recommendations and if they agree authorise the implementation.

 

As well as the interviews with individual staff, meetings have been held with small groups and with management teams of each Ministry as part of the review process.  The Advisory Council and Public Services Commission have received presentations by the Public Service Reform Advisor and the Consultative Forum have received updates and answers to questions raised through their normal sessions with TCIG.  It is the intention to have further public meetings with public servants as the reforms progress.  

 

Working with the Office of Public Service Management, the review team are considering the design of a compensation scheme for any staff who are made redundant.  As had been said above as far as possible it is hoped that the reductions will come through normal retirements and staff leaving for other reasons. Also where work is transferred to the private sector generally, contract agreements will include re-employment by the private contractor by transferring the staff with the work.

 

Other initiatives such as the current scholarships programme are being reviewed by OPSM in relation to the public service. The Scholarships programme however, which is run by the Ministry of Education, is about supporting TCI young talent to gain appropriate qualifications for all types of employment.  The public service requires certain skills but the private sector also needs people with the right qualifications for a much wider range of professions. The OPSM and Ministry of Education and other stakeholders are working towards developing a scheme which recognises these needs and provides for appropriate scholarships. Placement in any industry cannot always be guaranteed, but OPSM is also looking at how the succession plan, for replacing staff who retire or leave the public service, can support the placement of returning students who have been identified as suitable for public service jobs.

 

In the future there will need to be a review of the grades, wage and salary structure of the public service to encourage staff to join the service and motivate them and to enhance their development through professional training. Resources have been made available for retraining as a consequence of the rightsizing exercise but a salary review can only be undertaken when the reform of the public service and other initiatives result in freeing up additional financial resources. In addition OPSM is reviewing and implementing a new performance management system designed to ensure that staff are given appropriate targets to achieve and that their performance is monitored and managed effectively by their managers.