100,000 jobs waiting to be filled in civil service

NST

PUTRAJAYA:There are about 100,000 job vacancies in the country’s civil service, with health and education sectors offering the most openings.
Public Service Department (PSD) director-general Tan Sri Ismail Adam said the situation arose because the government was in dire need of doctors, dentists, pharmacists and teachers.

"Some vacancies happen because they can only be filled through promotions. If there’re no eligible candidates, then they stay vacant until suitable candidates are promoted," he said here yesterday.

He was responding to DAP’s allegations that the PSD had created more vacancies just to provide jobs for over 60,000 unemployed graduates in the country.

"That’s not a fair statement. We take in civil servants based on their expertise, skills, knowledge and several other factors. Each service commission has its own stringent process to screen potential employees," Ismail said.
"And we’ve at no time received any instruction from the government of the day to create more vacancies just to give unemployed graduates jobs."

Ismail said that although some argued that automation would enable the government to slash the number of its employees, which currently stands at over a million, some sectors could not run on automation alone.

"Those in the health and education sectors can’t be automated. We can probably reduce a bit in the administrative area but not more than that.

"If we want good service with fewer people providing the service, to me it’s going to be difficult," Ismail said.

On another note, he urged civil servants, who would enjoy a pay rise between 7.5 per cent and 35 per cent starting July, to work hard, smart and improve the quality of service whenever possible.

He said that although several parties had called for civil servants to work longer hours in tandem with the salary increase, "working long hours does not mean increased productivity".

Ismail also said that civil servants wishing to seek employment outside office hours or start a business to supplement their income should inform their respective heads of department.

"We allow them to work outside but there’s a limit to it. Make sure it doesn’t disrupt your duty at the office." — Bernama