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CIVIL SERVICE REFORM ACT OF 1978.
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Examines Act, background, aims, provisions, effectiveness, need for reform.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Examines Act, background, aims, provisions, effectiveness, need for reform.

Paper Introduction:
Introduction Federal employees are not covered by many of the same regulations to which employees in private industry are subject, and many among the general public associate "bureaucrats" with federal employees. The federal government is often perceived as being unwieldy, inefficient, and a bastion of employees who would not be able to perform effectively in private industry. In 1978, Congress tried to address these concerns with the Civil Service Reform Act (CSRA), the last major overhaul of the federal employment system. In the intervening 20 years, the Act has been both lauded and criticized for its effects with even its supporters calling for additional reform. This research examines the Act and its effects over the past two decades from a human resource management perspective. Civil

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Currently, for example, the Office of Personnel Managementadministers tests for approximately half of the job openings in the federalgovernment. Washington, DC: MSPB, 1997. "Reform Trickles In." Government Executive Magazine (October 1995). In addition to seekingto find workers who could perform the tasks at hand, the federal governmentalso sought to provide a progressive employment environment with upwardmobility for its employees and with affirmative action at the core of itshiring practices (a philosophy which was put into place during the 196 s).Prospective employees were subject to standardized examinations developedto eliminate personal bias in the hiring and recruiting process (theFederal Service Entrance Examination, for example). The CSRA alsocreated the Senior Executive Service (SES), a program designed to retainsenior managers who have the experience necessary to run an effectiveagency, but who were often lured to private industry. Among senior civil service workers,the Act is perceived as having had a positive effect on the civil service,but less of an effect than originally anticipated (Daley 359). The CSC was also responsible for college recruitment,public relations, and job information (Cipolla 17). However, CSRA did not eliminate provisions from 1912legislation which makes it difficult to terminate nonperformers (Brumback111). CSRA was a strong and long overduefirst step toward real civil service reform, but it is time to refine thesystem. With the manual becoming obsolete in 1994,agencies received a greater degree of autonomy and were now able to developtheir own personnel procedures. Internet address: http://www. govexec.com/reinvent/articles/1 95s5.htmRobisch, Thomas G. The lack of implementation of some of the key provisions of the Act atthe regional office level demonstrates that managers need additionaltraining in the Act and how it can benefit them and their employees. This research examines the Act and its effects over thepast two decades from a human resource management perspective. There are inherentproblems with such a program since private industry has quantifiablestandards (often tied to financial performance) by which employees can bejudged. CSRA was designed to eliminate much of the centralized function of theCivil Service Commission, but there were problems with the way the Act wasworded. Work was done with veterans' groups to accommodatereturning Vietnam military personnel and with women's organizations toimprove recruiting among women entering the workforce. Introduction Federal employees are not covered by many of the same regulations towhich employees in private industry are subject, and many among the generalpublic associate "bureaucrats" with federal employees. This was done by replacing the Civil ServiceCommission with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and by eliminatingsome of the standardized tests that were formerly in place. "The Reluctance of Federal Managers to Utilize Formal Procedures for Poorly-Performing Employees." Review of Public Personnel Administration (Spring 1996): 73-85. This 1 , page documentdetailed the policies that existed under the centralized program, but wasnot eliminated by CSRA. From a humanresource perspective, this causes confusion and has resulted in increasedprocedures rather than the streamline operation that the Act was designedto introduce (Holmes 1). Civil Service Before CSRA Traditionally, the federal government used centralized management ofthe staffing process to achieve social objectives. Nonetheless, CSRAestablished the Merit System Protection Board (MSPB) which is responsiblefor oversight of the merit pay system in the federal government("Introduction 1"). There has been a trend toward field offices being moreactive in their own recruiting and testing, and these activities have movedbeyond merely the staffing levels. "A More Effective, Less Intrusive IRS." Tax Notes (Oct 13, 1997): 245-247.Cipolla, Frank P. In the intervening 2 years, the Act has been bothlauded and criticized for its effects with even its supporters calling foradditional reform. The federalgovernment is often perceived as being unwieldy, inefficient, and a bastionof employees who would not be able to perform effectively in privateindustry. This increased the need for strong humanresource professionals familiar not only with human resource practices, butalso with the intricacies of the federal government and the civil serviceprogram (Holmes 1). This bill did not become law because itfaced opposition from both Democrats and Republicans, but there have beenother efforts at reform since CSRA. Internet address: http://www.fpmi.com/MSPB/MSPBIntro.html.Brumback, Gary B. Even those civil service workers who were specifically targeted underCSRA have mixed reactions to its implementation. In one instance in the federal government (the Internal RevenueService), the idea that employees are evaluated based on the revenue theyare able to generate actually has a negative effect on the public and theway it perceives the civil service (Caplin 245). Works CitedAn Introduction to the MSPB. The most notable of these may be theelimination of the Federal Personnel Manual. According to one study,workers affected by the SES provisions of the Act are likely to besupportive overall of CSRA, but are not more favorably disposed to the Actthan colleagues who are not affected. It is worth noting that CSRA was passed under a Democraticadministration (Carter), but was largely implemented and shaped byRepublican administrations (Reagan and Bush). However, there has been difficulty withimplementing some of the other provisions of CSRA, including thoseregarding poor performance among workers. In some cases, managers aresimply not familiar with the CSRA regulations and how they can be used toimprove performance; in other cases, managers are reluctant to implementprocedures that represent a significant departure with the way thatproblems were handled in the past (Robisch 75). Conclusion CSRA did not completely reform the civil service as its proponentssaid it would, but it did offer significant changes to a centralized andoverburdened system. Among the changes that CSRA brought wasthe establishment of a merit pay system which was designed to mirror thepay-for-performance standard in private industry. Individual agencies developed staffing levels for the various types ofindividuals they wanted to recruit, but the actual recruiting was handledby the Commission. At this point, the continuing success of the Act isbased on training managers on how the Act can benefit them and theirworkers, and on seeking to implement all of the key points of the actthroughout the federal government. "Pay-for-Performance and the Senior Executive Service: Attitudes About the Success of Civil Service Reform." American Review of Public Administration (December 1995): 355-372.Holmes, Allen. Analysis of the Effects of CSRA Prior to CSRA, individual offices of the federal government were notresponsible for the initial recruitment and testing of applicants; thatresponsibility fell to the Civil Service Commission under the centralizedplan. This lessened the knowledge and responsibility that human resourcemanagers had in the field, and decreased demand for human resourceprofessionals outside the Commission's ranks. It was during theearly 197 s that the federal government began to be an increasingly diverseworkplace. In addition to the MSPB, CSRA generally tried to decentralize thefederal civil service by giving individual agencies more autonomy withregard to hiring employees. While some of the goals of CSRA, such as eliminating poorperformers and linking pay and performance, appeal to both Democrats andRepublicans, it must be assumed that the influence of Republicanadministrations led to different results than a Democratic administrationwould have produced. CSRA introduced a number of reforms to the civil service employmentprocess, while other areas, such as the job classification program,remained essentially undisturbed. Calls for reform have beenheard most recently under a Democratic administration once again. It isimpossible to determine what the effects of the Act would have been ifimplementation had occurred under the leadership of a Democraticadministration, but the Act would probably have taken a different form thanit did. The Act alsocreated the Merit Systems Protection Board, introduced reforms designed tofacilitate the termination of poorly performing employees, defined meritprinciples (those which the MSPB is supposed to oversee) and establishedcollective bargaining rights for employee unions within the civil service(Holmes 1). In an environment that is vastlydifferent from that of 2 years ago, it is also time to introduce newreforms which can seek to streamline both government operations and howthose activities are accomplished. "Human Resources Management in the Federal Government." The Public Manager (Spring 1996): 17-19.Daley, Dennis M. "The Unemployment-at-Will Doctrine." Labor Law Journal (Feb 1995): 111-115.Caplin, Mortimer. Thistraining is a human resource issue that may have been lost when the Act wasimplemented since the civil service is no longer as centralized as it oncewas. CSRA CSRA abolished the Civil Service Commission and established the Officeof Personnel Management to oversee civil service statutes. These exams, andindeed the Civil Service itself, were administered by the Civil ServiceCommission (CSC). While this is a substantial reduction from the former system,it results in a number of agencies still dependent on a centralizedbureaucracy for their recruiting and hiring functions. Civil Service After CSRA Since CSRA, the civil service as a whole has become more decentralizedwith an increasing number of human resource decisions being made at thefield office level. In 1978, Congress tried to address these concerns with the CivilService Reform Act (CSRA), the last major overhaul of the federalemployment system. CSRA also introducedreforms through which poorly performing employees can have action takenagainst them; this was designed to improve the overall performance of thecivil service. Without this training, however, managers are likely to continue to behesitant to implement key provisions and the public will not realize thefull benefit of CSRA. There have been efforts at reforming CSRA: the most recent occurredduring President Clinton's first term when his administration drafted a 16 -page civil service reform bill.

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