DESA's STAFF SPEAK-UP: - TRANSPARENCY IN RECRUITMENT & PROMOTION PROCEDURES

C. Transparency in recruitment/promotion procedures, use of consultants, interns, short-term staff and retirees (Summary of the issue raised by DESA Staff)

• There is a perceived lack of transparency in how temporary posts are allocated. Division Directors have too much discretion in allocating temporary posts without advertisement or interview process, especially given that the incumbent is almost always given the job once it is advertised. Abuses were reported in this area.

• Vacancies are timed and tailored to fit specific candidates or delayed and consultants/retirees hired as temporary replacements. There is no accountability on the actual content of vacancy announcements and, interview panels are generally arranged with a view to ensure pre-decided outcomes (the panel leader usually chooses like-minded people, friends, supervisees, etc.)

• Maintaining large pumbers of temporary staff - particularly at P2 and P3 levels - for many years continually renewing contracts, after a one month break in service, undermines formal recruitment processes and blocks candidates from both the NCE and GtoP. It also circumvents education requirements for professional posts. Eventually these "backdoor" recruits may acquire permanent posts often at a higher level. (See also Career Development -- Investing in Staff.)

• Furthermore, consultants and retirees are frequently hired to perform work that regular staff could easily and willingly perform and which would also assist them to acquire further experience that could improve their skills and assist them to obtain a future promotion. Some consultants hired for short-term projects have stayed on for years, thereby precluding career opportunities for regular staff members and violating the concept of consultant status. (See also Career Development -- Investing in staff)

• Rather than hiring short-term staff to replace staff on mission assignments, staff at lower levels should be given the opportunity to perform higher level tasks, while short-term recruitment should be sought for the lower level functions. This should especially be the case for GS staff being placed against temporary P2 pr P3 posts in order to perform more challenging functions. There is a SMCC agreement (SMCC XXV) which clearly spells out that this should be done in all offices yet it is never implemented.

• The expedient solution to fill posts quickly – by hiring retired or outside personnel for regular work – is regrettably very common. This practice destroys staff morale and creates an artificial barrier to staff growth and advancement. Complying with the rule to advertise expected vacancies well in advance could curb some of the need to hire retired staff