Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing Human Resource Laws & Regulations

Transcription

1 REPUBLIC OF RWANDA Public Service Commission PO Box: 6913 Kigali-Rwanda Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing Human Resource Laws & Regulations Designed and printed by AZ MEDIA PLUS (+250) June 2013

2 REPUBLIC OF RWANDA Public Service Commission PO Box: 6913 Kigali-Rwanda Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing Human Resource Laws & Regulations June

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4 FOREWORD The Public Service Commission (PSC) is a national body, created by Article 181 of the Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda of June 4, 2003 as amended to date. PSC is governed by Law No 39/2012 of 24/12/2012 that determines the responsibilities, organization and functioning of the public service. Amongst other duties, the Commission is mandated to carry out research on matters relating human resources management. It is in this regard that the Commission conducted A study on challenges faced by Government Institutions while implementing human resources laws and regulations with the following objectives: 1. To identify challenges faced by Government institutions while implementing Human resources laws and regulations 2. To identify problems associated with compliance in different public institutions; 3. To set up strategies to better implement the laws and regulations; 4. To know the importance of compliance with laws and regulations as a strategic action of better staff management and service delivery in Government institutions. It is with pleasure that the Public Service Commission presents the findings of the study entitled Challenges faced by Government Institutions while implementing human resources laws and regulations to you. We believe the results contribute research based analysis and policy formulation. We would like to appreciate the continued support and guidance by the Chairperson and all Commissioners of the Public service Commission during the course of this study particularly. We acknowledge the work of Wise Consult and Associates who undertook the present assignment on behalf of the PSC, and thank respondents and all Rwandans who took part in this study either as a group or institutions. Thank you Angelina MUGANZA Executive Secretary Public service Commission 3

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6 Table of Contents Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing HR Laws & Regulations List of Abbreviations and Acronyms Key Terminologies used in the Report Executive Summary Background Introduction Rationale for the Study Methodology Scope Approach & Sampling Strata 1: Parliament and 13 Ministries Strata 2: Ministries with High Incidents of HR Complaints Strata 3: Public Institution with an Oversight Role in HR and Administration Strata 4: Public Organs with High Incidents of HR Conflicts Strata 5: Public Organs Covered by Special Statutes Strata 6: Kigali City/ Provinces Strata 7: Three Districts per Province Two with Highest and One with Lowest Number of Reported HR Disputes Strata 8: Public Institutions / Organs - Additional Helping Forces & Challenges Helping Factors Challenges Findings of the Study Challenges Faced While Implementing HR Laws and Regulations Problems Associated with Compliance in Different Public Organizations Challenges that Caused Low Rates of Compliance to HR Laws & Regulations Strategies for Better Implementation of HR Laws and Regulations Importance of Compliance with the HR Laws as Strategic Action for Better Staff Management and Service Delivery in Government Institutions Conclusions & Recommendations Conclusions Recommendations Annexes Annex I: Questionnaire Annex II: Terms of Reference

7 List of Abbreviations and Acronyms BNR National Bank of Rwanda CHUB University Hospital of Butare CHUK University Hospital of Kigali CNLS National Commission for Aids Control EWSA Energy, Water and Sanitation Authority HR Human Resource GoR Government of Rwanda IRST Institute of Research, Science & Technology KHI Kigali Health Institute KIE Kigali Institute of Education KIST Kigali Institute of Science & Technology MIGEPROF Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion MIDMAR Ministry of Disaster Management MIFOTRA Ministry of Public Service and Labour MINAFET Ministry of Foreign Affairs MINAGRI Ministry of Agriculture MINEAC Ministry of East Africa Community MINEDUC Ministry of Education MINICOM Ministry of Trade and Industry MINIJUST- Ministry of Justice MININTER Ministry of Internal Security MININFRA Ministry of Infrastructure MINISANTE- Ministry of Health NAEB National Agricultural & Export Board NEC National Electoral Commission NUR National University of Rwanda NURC National Unity & Reconciliation Commission OAG - Office of Auditor General ONATRACOM National Transport Company ORINFOR Rwanda National Information Office 6

8 PSC Public Service Commission PSCBS-Public Sector Capacity Building Secretariat RAB Rwanda Agricultural Board REB Rwanda Education Board REMA Rwanda Environment Management Authority RDB Rwanda Development Board RIAM Rwanda Institute of Administration and Management RNRA Rwanda Natural Resources Authority RRA Rwanda Revenue Authority RSSB Rwanda Social Security Board RURA Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority SFB School of Finance & Banking SPSS Statistical package for Social Sciences 7

9 1. Key Terminologies used in the Report Human Resource The personnel of public service that deals with the administration, management, and training of personnel. Public Service The service provided by the Government to the citizens of Rwanda. HR Laws These are laws that govern / regulate efficient management of the personnel rendering public service. HR Regulations It includes policies and procedures that establish a framework and set standards that guide the conduct of the human resource in public service. Statutes These are the written laws that determine / guide the administration and management of a particular aspect of governance and for the case of this study, the human resource in public service Provision It is a statement within an agreement or a law that a particular thing must happen or be done, especially before another can happen or be done Compliance This represents the state or fact of according with or meeting rules or standards as set out by the authority. Performance This is the ability to accomplish of a given task or duty, measured against preset known standards of service or determined deliverables. Service Delivery It is the ability to create a useful and memorable experience that results to the satisfaction and delight of the customer, in this case the citizen of Rwanda. Presidential Order this is legal instruction from the President of the Republic of Rwanda that states a condition, declares a law and requires obedience, recognizes an event or triggers the implementation of a law. Prime Minister s Order - this is legal instruction from the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Rwanda that states a condition, declares a law and requires obedience, recognizes an event or triggers the implementation of a law. Job design It is the process of putting together various elements to form a job, taking into account organizational and individual worker requirements, as well as considerations of health, safety, and ergonomics. Job Design typically refers to the way that a set of tasks, or an entire position, is organized. Job descriptions - A job description sets out the purpose of a job, where the job fits into the organizational structure, the main accountabilities and responsibilities of the job and the key tasks to be performed. Recruitment it is the process that provides essential information to potential recruits (and the recruiting team) so that they can determine the right kind of person to do the job. Selection - Employee Selection is the process of putting the right person on the right job. It is a procedure of matching organizational requirements with the skills and qualifications of people. Performance Management - It is the process that determines an individual s job-related actions and their outcomes within a particular position or setting. Salary It is a periodic payment from an employer to an employee, as specified in an employment contract Allowances - Money that a company or government agency provides to an employee for a specific purpose, such as transportation, healthcare costs or a flexible spending account. 8

10 Promotion - is the advancement of an employee s rank or position in an organizational hierarchy system. Promotion is reward for good performance in terms of designation, salary and benefits, and in some organizations the type of job activities. Disciplinary Procedures it is the step by step action taken by an employer to correct serious performance issues. It is applied in cases where the actions of the employee are habitual, dangerous, costly, or illegal. Training and Development This is the strategic tool used to offer enhanced service delivery through continuous training, education, and development of the staff serving public service. Career Progression - it is the upward movement or advancement made by people in a particular job. 9

11 2. Executive Summary The Public Service Commission (PSC) is a national body, created by Article 181 of the Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda of June 4, 2003 as amended to date. PSC is governed by Law No 39/2012 of 24/12/2012 that determines the responsibilities, organization and functioning of the public service. PSC has an independent oversight to ensure that staff working in the public service are fairly and impartially recruited, managed and supported based on principles of equity, transparency, good governance and integrity to deliver high quality service in an effective and efficient manner. In pursuit of its mandate, PSC made a decision to conduct this study so as to establish the challenges that government institutions face in implementing HR laws and regulations. It is in this context that the overall objective of the study was to come up with a detailed report on the challenges faced by Government Institutions while implementing HR laws and regulations. This is the first study that PSC has conducted to assess the challenges faced by government institutions in implementing HR laws and regulations. The findings of this study shall therefore be a critical reference point in determining requisite strategies and actions by PSC to render necessary support to the government institutions in complying with HR laws and regulations. This study was conducted between the months of April and May 2013 and covered government institutions (Public organs, Ministries, Public Institutions, and Local Authorities). The data was collected by use of a questionnaire that had been approved by PSC. It is critical to observe that the sampling cut across eight pre determined categories of government institutions. The essence of this approach was to ensure that each category of government institutions was covered in its own unique work environment. The categories were: Parliament (Chamber of Deputies) and Ministries Ministries with high incidence of HR complaints Public Institution with a oversight Role in HR and Administration Public Organs with High Incidents of HR Conflicts Public Organs Covered by Special Statutes Kigali City and Provinces Three Districts per Province Two with Highest and One with Lowest Number of Reported HR Disputes Other government institutions randomly picked In carrying out the study, the following were the guiding laws and regulations: a) Law No 22/2002 of 09/07/2002 on General Statute for Rwanda Public Service. b) Presidential Order No 46/01 of 29/07/2011 Governing Modalities for the Recruitment, Appointment and Nomination of Public Servants. c) Prime Ministers Order No 121/03 of 08/09/2010 Establishing the Procedure of Performance Appraisal and Promotion of Public Servants. In order for the study to establish the levels of compliance with the HR laws and regulations, the following HR components were considered as core: 10

12 Job design and grading Job descriptions Recruitment Selection Performance Management Salary and Allowances Promotion Disciplinary Procedures Training and Development Career Progression Primary data was collected through the use of a structured questionnaire (herewith attached as Annex I. The questionnaire was administered to the Directors of Administration, HR Staff (Directors, Managers and Officers), Executive Secretaries of Provinces and Districts and heads of public institutions/organs in the sampled Ministries, Organs, Agencies and Local Government entities (provinces and districts). The study covered sixty three (63) government institutions and a total of 105 questionnaires were completed by the various staffs working in HR and administration. The reason for the questionnaires being more than the number of government institutions is because the study provided for more than one questionnaire per institution. The key respondents were staff charged with the HR function and administrative duties. It is critical to note that while all necessary effort shall be made by PSC and all relevant stakeholders, the onus of addressing the challenges as detailed in this report rests with the people that serve the citizens by way of acknowledging that service to the nation calls for sacrifice and comes above all else. For one to serve effectively in the public service there needs to heed the call of duty for public good and commitment to patriotism and not just the consideration for salary, allowances and any other benefit. 11

13 3. Background 3.1 Introduction The Public Service Commission was established so as to cover a specific mandate through the following diverse yet complimentary responsibilities: Sensitize the public institutions to comply with laws and regulations that govern the public servants; Check if the public servants respect laws and regulations; Establish appropriate systems which are objective, transparent, fair and equitable for all; Evaluate and monitor the citizen perception on service delivered by public institutions. In view of the foregoing, PSC renders an oversight role to the various government ministries, agencies, public organs, public institutions and the local authorities (Provinces, Districts and Sectors). It is the oversight role that informed the need to conduct a comprehensive study to establish the extent to which various public institutions complied with existing laws and regulations, the impact of compliance on performance and how this affected service delivery in public institutions. In order for the study to achieve the desired results, the three legal instruments used as core points of reference by the study to gauge compliance or otherwise of the public servants were: a) Law No. 22/2002 of 09/07/2002 General Statutes for Rwanda Public Service. b) Presidential Order No 46/01 of 29/07/2011 Governing Modalities for the Recruitment, Appointment and Nomination of Public Servants. c) Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 of 08/09/2010 Establishing the Procedure of Performance Appraisal and Promotion of Public Servants. 12

14 3.2 Rationale for the Study Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing HR Laws & Regulations The study was commissioned to facilitate PSC play her role in ensuring effective and efficient Human Resources management, an essential ingredient in ensuring enhanced performance and service delivery of Human Resources. PSC is cognizant to the fact that for the public institutions to deliver seamless service to the citizens of Rwanda and Rwanda s partners in development there is need to address the issues and challenges that are faced by government institutions while implementing HR laws and regulations. The implementation of the HR laws and regulations was assessed and addressed in view of the government objectives for good governance, rule of law, professional ethics, efficient and effective service delivery to all the stakeholders. Amongst the key human resource issues which have to be considered in enhanced service delivery in the public service is compliance with the HR laws and regulations, a prerequisite for professionalism, equity and performance that shall eventually result in increased productivity. Through this study PSC sought to answer the following questions: What is compliance to HR laws and regulations? What challenges did the various government institutions (ministries, public organs, public institutions and local authorities) face while implementing the laws and regulations? Was there a pattern in compliance and/or non compliance? To what extent was this prevalent? What were the factors that worked in favour of compliance? Was this common across all government institutions? What led to non compliance? What were the key reasons were they related to human resource, organizational or institutional factors? Were the challenges internal or external? What were the practical strategies of addressing the challenges and enhancing overall compliance? How should compliance impact on better staff management and overall quality of service delivered by the public service? 13

15 4. Methodology 4.1 Scope This Study focused on having a deep understanding of the challenges that various government institutions faced in implementing HR laws and regulations. The study had envisaged to cover the period 2008 to This was reviewed to address the tangible and actual challenges that the government institutions faced at the time of the study. It is important to appreciate that the challenges were captured in the background of the general statutes as covered in Law No. 22/2002 of 09/07/2002, Presidential order No. 46/01 of 27/07/2011 that governs recruitment, appointment and nomination as well as the Prime Minister s Order No 121/03 of 08/09/2010 on performance appraisal. 4.2 Approach & Sampling Convenience/purposive sampling was picked as the research method to be used for this study. This was due to the fact that there was need to specifically ensure that some government institutions were covered during data collection. It is critical to observe that the sampling cuts across eight pre determined strata. The essence of this approach was to ensure that each category of government institutions was covered in its own unique work environment Strata 1: Parliament and 13 Ministries NO INSTITUTION 1 PARLIAMENT CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES 2 PRIME MINISTER S OFFICE 3 MINALOC 4 MIFOTRA 5 MINIEAC 6 MINISTRY OF JUSTICE 7 MINISTRY OF FINANCE 8 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION 9 MINISTRY OF MINICOM 10 MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE 11 MINISTRY OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT 12 MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS 13 MINISTRY OF INTERNAL SECURITY 14 MINISTRY OF GENDER & FAMILY PROMOTION 14

16 4.2.2 Strata 2: Ministries with High Incidents of HR Complaints NO MINISTRY 1 MINISTRY OF HEALTH 2 MINISTRY OF INFRASTRUCTURE 3 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION Strata 3: Public Institution with an Oversight Role in HR and Administration NO INSTITUTION RIAM RWANDA GOVERNANCE BOARD RWANDA EDUCATION BOARD HIGH COURT PSCBS RWANDA AGRICULTURAL BOARD PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OMBUDSMAN S OFFICE RSSB Strata 4: Public Organs with High Incidents of HR Conflicts NO ORGAN 1 ONATRACOM 2 NATIONAL MUSEUMS 3 IRST 4 CHUB 5 NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF RWANDA Strata 5: Public Organs Covered by Special Statutes NO ORGAN 1 BNR 2 RRA 3 RURA 4 OAG 15

17 It is important to note that the relationship between the public organs included in this strata and PSC should be reexamined to create a mutual working relationship and especially clarify the role of PSC in supporting the organs enhance operational efficiency in managing their human resource. All the four organs under this strata stated that they all had best practices that used the HR laws and regulations as a basis to develop and implement best practices within their individual organs. For example, Law No. 08/2009 of 27/04/2009 determined RRA s functioning and responsibilities. Rwanda Revenue Authority had their internal rules and regulations that governed the staff members and it is in line with General Statute as a matter of principal. This position was repeated by OAG, BNR and RURA. Another example was that RURA was established as per Law No. 09/2013 of 1 st March Article 35 detailed the statutes governing the staff, organisational structure and responsibilities of departments and stated that The Statutes governing the staff, organisational structure and responsibilities of departments shall be determined by the Regulatory Board. BNR stated that they used the HR laws and regulations as a bare minimum in managing their human resource. They indicated that they had comprehensive internal rules and regulations and for example in regard to performance management, they were moving towards use of the balanced score cards. Overall, it was noted that according to Article 181 of the constitution, PSC was mandated by law to be in charge of all public service issues and therefore play an oversight role. While all government institutions, including those governed by Special Statues, had express rights to have internal rules and regulations as well as performance management tools, it was prudent that the same are shared with PSC for ease of reference and record. The rationale for this provision was that whenever there would be an issue emanating from any government institution that required determination in regard to rights and/or obligations of a public servant, PSC, as the competent authority, would make reference to such documents and render informed direction and guidance Strata 6: Kigali City/ Provinces NO INSTITUTION 1 KIGALI CITY 2 EASTERN PROVINCE 3 WESTERN PROVINCE 4 NORTHERN PROVINCE 5 SOUTHERN PROVINCE Strata 7: Three Districts per Province Two with Highest and One with Lowest Number of Reported HR Disputes PROVINCE DISTRICT REPORTED HR DISPUTES ( ) WESTERN PROVINCE NYABIHU 7 RUBAVU 5 NGORORERO 0 16

18 EASTERN PROVINCE DISTRICT REPORTED HR DISPUTES ( ) NORTHERN PROVINCE SOUTHERN PROVINCE KIGALI PROVINCE NGOMA 21 RWAMAGANA 10 GATSIBO 4 DISTRICT REPORTED HR DISPUTES ( ) GAKENKE 12 GICUMBI 8 MUSANZE 0 DISTRICT REPORTED HR DISPUTES ( ) MUHANGA 31 HUYE 15 KAMONYI 3 DISTRICT REPORTED HR DISPUTES ( ) GASABO 38 NYARUGENGE 25 KICUKIRO Strata 8: Public Institutions / Organs - Additional NO PUBLIC INSTITUTION / ORGAN 1 KIGALI HEALTH INSTITUTE 2 SCHOOL OF FINANCE & BANKING 3 KIGALI INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 4 ORINFOR 5 EWSA 6 CHUK 7 CNLS 8 NURC 9 REB 10 RWANDA DEMOBILIZATION & REINTEGRATION COMMISSION 11 SUPREME COURT 12 RWANDA NATURAL RESOURCES AUTHORITY 17

19 Summary of Institutions Covered by the Study Strata Details Target Actual Comments 1 Parliament (Chamber of Deputies and 8 Ministries 2 Ministries with most complaints 3 Agencies / Organs with Specific role 4 Agencies / organs with most HR conflicts 5 Agencies under Special Statutes 9 13 Added (MIDMAR,MINEAC,MINAGRI,MINICOM & MINAFET and missed MIGEPROF) 3 2 MINEDUC was not responsive 9 7 Replaced two (RRA and PSC with NEC and RAB, then missed two (NEB and NEC). Supreme instead of High Court. 5 5 Met target (IRST, CHUB, NUR, ONATRACOM) 6 Kigali City/ Provinces 5 5 Met target 4 4 The input came in late after intervention by PSC. The agencies were: RRA, OAG, BNR & RURA. 7 Districts Met Target 8 Additional public institutions / organs TOTAL This was decided to enhance the coverage of public institutions (NEC, RSSB, CHUK, EWSA, ORINFOR, KIE, KIST, SFB, KHI, RNRA, NURC, CNLS) 4.3 Helping Forces & Challenges Helping Factors During the period of the study, a number of factors worked in favour of the study. The enabling factors enlisted during the study included: I. The support by the PSC secretariat. The regular briefing meetings ensured that the assignment was on schedule all the time. II. III. IV. There was a commendable level of participation by the target respondents. This enabled the data collection process go smoothly and achieve 88% responses. The study resonated with the issues facing the various cadres of staff implementing the HR laws and regulations. This made them participate with commitment and therefore facilitate the Consultants capture the necessary data for analysis and production of this report. The cooperation by the staff of the various government institutions, especially those working with local authorities (Provinces and Districts). 18

20 4.3.2 Challenges Study on Challenges Faced by Government Institutions While Implementing HR Laws & Regulations While there were many factors that worked in favour of smooth conduct and conclusion of the study, it is important to note that the there were a reasonable number of challenges as detailed here below: The time period marked for the study was reasonably short, especially in the background of the fact that most of the target respondents were quite busy in their work schedules. It is important that such studies in future be allocated adequate time so that all respondents are given adequate notice and have their full commitment. Some respondents did not prepare adequately and it took long to get the responses from them. In fact, on some occasions, they had to consult and this points to the fact that the respondents are not conversant with HR Laws and regulations, yet they are the ones responsible for HR issues in their respective institutions. 19

21 5. Findings of the Study The study covered sixty three (63) government institutions and managed to have a total of 105 questionnaires completed by the various staffs working in HR and administration. The reason for the questionnaires being more than the number of government institutions was because the study provided for more than one questionnaire per institution. The key respondents were staff charged with the HR function and administrative duties. The study also sought to capture the age brackets of the respondents and the chart below gives the various ranges as determined prior to administering the questionnaire. The chart above shows that 52% of the staff handling the HR function across government institutions were between the age of twenty eight and forty years, with only 1% below the twenty years and 47% were above forty years. The study sought to understand the level of education of the staff working in HR and administration positions in the public service. It is important to note that 7% of the staffs did not give a response to this aspect of the study, a matter that needs to be further probed. Most of the staff (77%) had a Bachelors degree and 2% either had or were pursuing PhD. 20

22 In carrying out the study, there was need to establish the gender composition of the staffs interviewed. It was noted that of the staffs that responded to the questionnaire, thirty percent were female while seventy percent were male. In carrying out the study, it was important to understand the period for which the respondents had served in public service. In this particular aspect, two of the respondents did not give input on this particular aspect. The fact that 56% had served for more than four years, was an indication that they ought to be familiar with the matters that affect compliance to HR laws and regulations. 21

23 5.1 Challenges Faced While Implementing HR Laws and Regulations In order to appreciate the challenges faced by the government institutions while implementing HR laws and regulations, particular attention was paid to Law no 22/2002 dated 9 th July 2002 (General statutes for Rwanda Public service), Presidential Order No 46/01 dated 29 th July 2011 (modalities for Recruitment, Appointment & Nomination of Public Servants) as well as Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 dated 8 th September 2010 establishing the Procedure of Performance Appraisal and Promotion of Public Servants. The cores aspects of focus by the study were enlisted as here below: Job design and grading Job descriptions Recruitment Selection Performance Management Salary and Allowances Promotion Disciplinary Procedures Training and Development Career Progression In regard to the issue of whether government institutions faced challenges while implementing HR laws and regulations as laid out in the relevant statutes and orders, 81% stated that they had various challenges while 19% noted they had no challenges at all. 22

24 It is important to note that the above chart demonstrates that most of the staffs handling the various HR issues across public service had significant challenges either in one or more of the areas covered by this study. The fact that 19% stated that they did not have challenges was a pointer to the fact that indeed, necessary support should be offered to those that had challenges and the situation improved for better service delivery. The study established that the extent to which a staff member faced challenges was not limited to a particular aspect of compliance. For example, the prevalence of challenges in structured aspects such as job grading, design and description was about 80% and challenges only accounted for about 20% in that aspect. The table below gives further evidence that the areas with greatest challenges were: Organizational structure (52%) Allowances (76%) Promotion (85%) Discilplinary procedures (81%) Training and development (62%) 23

25 Challenges Faced in Various Aspects (%) Aspect of Assessment Yes No Job Design and Grading Job Descriptions Organizational structure Recruitment Selection Performance Management Salary Allowances Promotion Disciplinary Procedures Training and Development Career Progression The areas that posed least challenges were: Job design and grading (20%) Job descriptions (19%) Recruitment (22%) Selection (10%) Performance Management (24%) Salary (27%) Career progression (17%) 5.2 Problems Associated with Compliance in Different Public Organizations The findings of the study were that a greater number of government institutions faced challenges in complying with HR Laws and Regulations. The problems associated with compliance were largely similar across the various types of government institutions though some were quite unique to specific institutions. 24

26 For instance, there was a general perception that allowances for public organs were much higher than those of staff serving in the local authorities. It was also a concern for staff working in areas that required for example rendering service beyond the normal working hours, on weekends, etc. For example staffs working at MINAFET had to deal with protocol issues in some instances on odd hours and no additional allowances were provided. This being a study on the issues of compliance with the law and associated challenges, the staffs were engaged to assess the extent to which there were areas of contradiction in the various laws and regulations that guide the functioning of public service. The chart below captures the response given by the staffs covered by the study. 25

27 The staffs indicated that 67% of them had not experienced instances where any laws were contradicting while 33% were of the opinion that some laws and regulations were contradicting either because they lacked lacked clarity or they risked being interpreted differently. Probed to give instances of areas where the laws and regulations were contradicting, none of the respondents pointed out to any such areas. The inference made from this kind of scenario was that the HR staffs were either not well acquinted with the laws and regulations or they must have looked at successive orders/regulations without paying attention to the clause(s) repealing earlier laws, e.g the Presidential Order No. 46/01 of 29/07/2011) repealled the earlier Presidential Order No. 83/01 of 09/12/2010 on Recruitment, Selection, Apppointment and Nomination of Public Servants. For example, Article 32 of Law 22/2002 of 09/07/2002 provides that every recruited employee is subject to a probation period of six months while Article 12 of Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 of 08/09/2010 stipulates that only new employees are subject to probation. There is need to look at the two laws and indeed harmonize them to enhance operational efficiency and ensure uniformity across board. The study indicated that 41% of the staffs in public service had heavy workloads compared to 59% that were comfortable with the tasks they had to perform in their respective job positions. 26

28 The reasons advanced for heavy workload included: 1. There was a critical shortage of staff in some of the departments. 2. The aspect of there being some issues that came up and had to be addressed within stipulated period yet had not been planned for. 3. The aspect of poor planning and inability by some staff to set their priorities led to claims of being overworked. For instance, routine plans must be produced and a staff member waiting until they are due cannot claim to be overworked. The matter of overwork was included in the study to have an appreciation on the extent to which the staffs did not comply with the issue of working hours. The law provides for the number of hours that staff should work in a week. The fact that some staffs chose to work for more than the provisions of the statutes is a pointer to non compliance. The most notable causes of challenges faced by government institutions in complying with the law are: i. Complex laws the staffs did not demonstrate to have completely grasped the provisions of the HR laws and regulations. This in effect meant that without a good understanding of the laws and regulations, it was difficult to effectively implement the same. Given that the staffs did not point towards specific articles during the interviews, the main articles considered as complex from their explanations of the challenges they experienced were: a) Law No 22/2002 of 09/07/2002 General Statutes Articles 36 Any change of a working post within the same administration is an internal transfer. This article lacked in clarity and needed to be amplified to clarify the meaning of same administration. Article 42: The second and third paragraph needed to be refined so as to determine the consequences of non compliance and detail who and how the reasons for not proceeding on leave were handled. Article 50 needed to be reviewed so as to avoid ambiguity. In its current form, it did not specify the modalities for staff training and development in a clear manner. Article 51 did not give clear guidelines and indeed the term upgrading needed to be revisited. Article 52 needed to aptly define short and long term courses and modalities for application and approval so as to ensure equity and fairness. Article 53: the regular updates referred to by the article need to be determined in respect to time, monthly, quarterly, annual, etc. Article 54 and Article 55 required standard documents to determine procedures for determining the staffs to attend training. Article 72 should address performance management not just evaluation. Articles 87 to 95, 106 to 115 lack in depth and there is need to establish if actual meaning may have been lost during translation from the original language in which the law was drawn. 27

29 b) Presidential Order No. 46/01 of 29/07/2011 Articles 5 and 6 needed to be streamlined and actually remove the words if possible to avoid any doubt in the instructions. There should also be the sensitivity to the fact that not all job seekers, especially those in rural areas may access the media defined therein. Article 20 gave a deadline of seven (7) days. This was in most cases difficult, especially for the local authorities and given that most of them outsourced this process, they were not able to meet the strict deadline. Article 26 needed review, with the possibility of extending the period from six to twelve months. That would save the government institutions a reasonable amount of financial resources and time. c) Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 of 08/09/2010 Article 14 and 15 needed to define who Managers, Experts, Professional, Technicians and support staff are for avoidance of doubt in interpretation. Article 15 has attributes that are in practice difficult to qualify objectively and this needs to be clarified. Articles 23 and 24 needed to be simplified to become user friendly by the HR staffs in the various government institutions. Article 29 also required to be simplified and given adequate clarity so as to achieve the desired results. Articles 31 and 32 required to be amplified for ease of interpretation and especially the criteria for determining higher performance and define the special gratification In that regard, the study established that the annex in the Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 of 08/09/2010 that contained the forms used for performance management was indeed complicated and most of the HR staffs found them difficult to complete. ii. iii. iv. Lack of communication facilities especially for the staff at the Provinces and Districts. This hindered free and timely flow of information and therefore compliance and the subsequent impact on efficient delivery of service. Too much unplanned work and therefore performance was adversely affected. There were challenges either in limited or no transport at all and this affected the staff s ability to comply. 28

30 The following chart depicts the scenario in regard to the area where most of the respondents registered cited as of greatest challenge. This is a clear indication that there was more need to invest in educating the HR staffs in various government institutions in the implementation of Presidential Order No 46/01 0f 29/07/2011 and Prime Minister s Order No. 121/03 of 08/09/

31 It is important to note that there were broadly three issues that affected compliance with the HR laws and regulations: i. Understanding the various articles of the law and appreciating their purpose in facilitating efficient service delivery. In Instances where the HR staffs had a thorough grasp of the laws and regulations, compliance was not a challenge. ii. iii. The disposition of the person charged with the responsibility of ensuring the execution of the provisions of the law and regulations was very important. The staffs charged with the responsibility of HR function in the various government institutions were the bona fide custodians of the laws and regulations. Their willingness and capacity to ascertain compliance was core. The contracting officers are accountable for the implementation of the laws and regulations and full responsibility for the same was on the HR staff. The environment and context in which the HR staffs operated determined the success with which the laws and regulations were implemented. In regard to the environment, this included such things as availability of necessary resources, equipment, facilitation, the team within the institution, and the support of the contracting officers, etc. It was important to state that the hierarchy of laws flowed in the following order: 1. The Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda. 2. International Convections ratified by Rwanda. 3. Organic Laws 4. Ordinary Laws 5. Presidential Orders 6. Ministerial Orders The Laws must be passed with the orders so as to facilitate their implementation. a) In job grading and design, 80% of the staffs had no challenges at all. 30

32 b) Job designs that were not well handled did not fit all the attributes of the job and therefore implementation became difficult. c) There was inadequate training in regard to the issues related to job design and the staffs therefore were not able to comply. It is critical to note that of all the legal tools examined during the study, none of them detailed how job design was to be conducted. d) Some of the job designs were quite inflexible and therefore posed a serious problem to the staffs when they had to verify compliance or otherwise. e) The fact that there had not been a revision of the General Statutes since 2002 meant that some emerging issues risked not being addressed and therefore could contributed to non compliance. f) In some instances, due to the issue of inadequate skills and a shortage of people with the requisite skills, there were instances of total mismatch between the job design and the person holding the job title. The 20% of the respondents that had challenges associated with job design attributed this to: The study established that 83% of the staffs serving in the public service clearly understood their job descriptions. The remaining 17% indicated the following as the problems associated with implementing the HR laws and regulations: i. In some institutions, the contracting officers were indeed not very clear on what specific tasks needed to be performed. ii. iii. There was an overlap between two positions and in such instances the job descriptions were not clear to the employees. There are instances in which MIFOTRA gave guidelines for organizational structures and did not detail what such positions entailed and the job descriptions were therefore inadequate. 31

33 While 69% of the respondents were clear on the provisions of the various organizational structures, 31% percent had some challenges with the same. Amongst the most notable challenges were: 32

34 i. Any changes of the senior management sometimes affected the way some government institutions were managed in regard to the organizational structure. ii. iii. iv. There were many instances where there were organizational structures that indicated many positions, yet the staffs available were not adequate to take charge of all the responsibilities of the institution in question. In some cases, authority did not flow as stipulated in the organizational structure. Some of the staff members in some institutions were not aware of the organizational structure and how authority flowed and that posed a challenge in service delivery v. There were instances when the realities on the ground were not considered and this occurred in some institutions creating confusion in regard to how tasks were to sidered and this occurstsotra gives guidelines for organization structures and does not detail what such positions entailbe executed. While 78% of the government institutions did not have any challenges in regard to recruitment, 22% raised some pertinent issues as listed here below: 33

35 i. Few employees in most government institutions. Most notable during the period of the study was MINISANTE. ii. iii. iv. There were many instances when the cost of recruitment became very high. This was reported in circumstances when there was a skills set that was not easily available in the job market and advertisements and interview had to be conducted many times. In some cases, there were very many applicants and this made the process take a lot of time, given the limited staffs available to conduct the critical exercise of short listing. It is important to note that much as all efforts had been made to address favoritism, this remained a challenge that must be addressed consistently and with maximum effort. v. Most of the time, recruitment was done at the very last moment and this made the process hurried, a matter that brought time constraint related issues. vi. There was a high turnover in the public service and this made recruitment almost a continuous exercise and in most instances led to loss of institutional memory. 34

36 The selection process was very clearly provided for by the law and 90% of the staffs had no challenges at all. It was the view of 10% of the staffs that there was room for improvement and that the following bottlenecks needed to be addressed: i. Favoritism. ii. iii. Ensure HR representation throughout the process. Poor and/or inadequate applicant documentation and this either delays or affected the selection process. In respect to performance management, 76% of the staffs faced no challenges at all while 24% had some issues that needed to be addressed in order to enhance efficiency and effectiveness. 35

37 The key issues that deserved attention were: i. There was need to establish a criteria that accounted for an all round tool to measure all the tasks performed by the staff, irrespective of whether they are within their job descriptions or not. ii. iii. iv. The staffs were of the considered opinion that they do not fully comprehend the terms used during the performance management process. There was therefore need to train them on the same. It was important to sensitize the various managers and supervisors on all the critical components of performance management. This shall guarantee a broader understanding of the importance of the exercise and enhance compliance levels. There were some instances of non objectivity in the performance management process and therefore need to address strict compliance to ensure equity and fairness throughout the process. The issues of challenges related to salaries indicated that while all had to comply with the provisions of the law, 73% were not willing to discuss this matter while 27% expressed opportunities for improvement. The key reasons advanced included: i. Inadequate salaries compared to the work load. ii. iii. iv. Inequality in salaries for staffs almost performing the same tasks. Low salary compared to cost of living. Salary not always based on education and especially different compared to the private sector. 36

38 The staffs stated that 76% of the government institutions did not face any challenges at all in regard to the allowances offered to staff. The remaining 24% had the following perceived challenges with the aspect of their various allowances and these included: i. Perceived inequality in opportunities between local and central government employees. ii. iii. Inequality for same qualification, subject to job position Inequality yet in same Job family. In respect to how promotion was handled in government institutions, 85% were of the opinion that there was compliance with the law while 15% cited non compliance. 37

39 The reasons they advanced were: i. In many instances, replacements for senior positions were filled by people from outside the institution. ii. iii. In some cases, there was no clear criteria followed to promote staff and in the absence of a clear explanation this affected the morale of the staff. It took long to promote staff and this made some of them seek employment in other sectors where they deemed their chances for promotion better. There was an exceptionally high degree of compliance in regard to disciplinary action within the government institutions as indicated by the 81% of the respondents stating that they complied. The small representation of 19% gives the following reasons for non compliance or facing challenges in complying with the laws and regulations: i. Conflicts in grasping the provisions of HR laws by managers and supervisors. ii. iii. The disciplinary process was not sometimes applied equally to all staff. Some staffs that are close to supervisors and managers could get away with some irresponsible actions by not being summoned by the disciplinary committee. The rate of non compliance on training and development was rated fairly high, standing at 62%. 38

40 Non compliance was attributed to the following issues: i. Budget constraints. ii. iii. There was a constraint on the factor of time as most of the staffs were very busy. In some instances, there was no follow up and therefore the training obtained was not applied in performance of the staff s tasks. iv. Sometimes the trainings offered were short courses that were generic, making it difficult for some staffs to apply in their areas of work. 39

41 In regard to career progression, the rate of compliance was at 83% and non compliance stood at 17%. The following reasons were advanced for the trend: i. There was limited relevant training and continuous skills development and therefore the risk to stagnate in a job position. ii. The provisions for career progression were not adequately addressed in the law. iii. There was favoritism in some instances. There was concurrence that there was harmony in the HR laws and regulations as indicated by the 67% of the staffs who stated that they did not instances of contradiction in HR laws and regulations. There remaining 33% of the respondents were of the opinion that there were conflicting sections of the law. When requested to identify the specific articles / sections that conflict, they were not able to do so. This therefore portends that while there are some areas that appear as contradicting, it is more of a question of understanding the HR laws and regulations and not picking any single article or in isolation but in the spirit and letter of related articles and sections. Requested to explain the challenge of extra work load, 40% of the staffs advanced various reasons for non compliance while 60% were of the opinion that there was a reasonable level of compliance in regard to the work load. Those that stated there were instances of extra work load gave the following reasons: i. No proper organizational structures and in some instances the structures had more job titles than the physical staff available. ii. iii. Some government institutions rendered services that called for staff to work beyond the usual 7am to 5pm schedule. The other reason that the staff attributed to extra work load was poor job design against the actual needs of the institution. 40

42 5.3 Challenges that Caused Low Rates of Compliance to HR Laws & Regulations The study sought to take inventory of the specific factors that contributed towards low compliance to the HR laws and regulations. The following were captured as the key reasons for the poor rates of compliance: Absence of regular review of the organizational structures to ensure relevance to the realities of the day at the various government institutions. Lack of internal rules and regulations as well as the code of conducts for the various institutions so as to address their unique needs. No mechanisms to hold the employees to account on their specific roles in their various job positions, especially when the job descriptions are not clear and/or well designed. During the recruitment and selection process, the issues of education and qualifications were not treated with utmost strictness. Inadequate time not allocated whenever recruitment was conducted so as to allow a transparent and effective process that ensured public service gets the best from what is available on the labour market. While the staffs responsible for the HR function were expected to galvanize compliance to HR laws and regulations, adequate resources must be provided to ensure efficient service delivery. It was important to ensure due consultations with all stakeholders when critical decisions in regard to HR in public service were made. That would offer an interactive and transparent window where information was shared on enhanced performance. There was need to review the way information was disseminated during recruitment. The information should reach as many people as possible so as to ensure competitiveness and fairness in the recruitment process. The matter of staff not being able to take their leave days needs to be addressed. The job descriptions at especially the districts ought to be improved so that the staffs were well aware of their roles and specific duties. In some rare instances, conflict of interest contributed to non compliance. This was where for example a manager or supervisor influenced a decision on selection or disciplinary procedure. Lack of independence and necessary authority by PSC that would enhance reinforcement of compliance by government institutions; such us the powers vested upon OAG, RRA and the Ombudsman office, to mention but just a few. PSC should be empowered to either recommend or sanction non complying officers and/or institutions. Inadequate follow up on the implementation of the HR laws and regulations by PSC due to limited resources, especially personnel to follow up the many government institutions. In circumstances where local leadership interfered with the HR staff, they found themselves in a compromised position and hence failed to comply with the HR laws and regulations. There was relatively high staff turnover in the public service and that posed a challenge. 41