09 March 2007

PSD: No quota for efficiency exam passes

05 Mar 2007

PUTRAJAYA: There is no quota in the number of passes for Penilaian Tahap Kecekapan (PTK), the efficiency exam civil servants take to increase their chances of promotion.

Public Service Department corporate communications head Hasniah Rashid said a civil servant’s performance, based on his yearly appraisal and other conditions in the scheme of service, were used in deciding promotions.

Promotions also depended on the number of vacancies available.

"The PTK is just one of the criteria. It provides an advantage, but even if you pass, you will not necessarily get a promotion if there is no vacancy. There is no quota," she said yesterday when commenting on complaints of a quota on PTK passes.

Civil servants are allowed to sit for the PTK up to four times a year.

Cuepacs president Omar Osman, in an interview with the New Sunday Times yesterday, described the PTK as "a joke".

He alleged that there was a quota, as there were cases where those who passed it did not get their increments or promotions.

In the interview, Osman explained why civil servants needed a salary hike, given the higher cost of living.

He said about 600,000 of the 1.1 million-strong civil service were earning less than RM1,500 per month.

Osman also lamented that the PSD had been unprofessional in handling the contributory pension scheme proposal with Cuepacs.

Hasniah clarified that the last salary revision was conducted in 2000.

She said it was done twice in 2002, first in January with a 10 per cent increase across the board, and in November, when the government introduced the new remuneration scheme.

Hasniah also said PSD had met Cuepacs a total of 11 times, including with officers from the Treasury, the Employees’ Provident Fund and Bank Negara, to discuss the proposal.

"We gave them a full report on the proposed pension scheme," she said.

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