Civil servants’ bonuses to be determined by public satisfaction rating

Based on a policy to be enacted by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) next year, the public will have a say on the bonuses government employees will receive.   “Next year ang titignan natin ano ang rating ng agency when it comes to delivery of frontline services.,” CSC-Office for Strategy Management director Victoria Esber, told GMA News Online Wednesday, at the sidelines of the ASEAN Conference on Promoting Social Accountability in Public Service.   “Mataas ba ang rating mo [the agency] that your people deserve a performance based bonus?” she added.   She said the memorandum circular on the policy will be issued early next year.   The government agency’s rating will be determined by the CSC, with the help of accredited civil society organizations. Nationwide surveys will be conducted along with interviews of people who have just availed of a government service.   The surveys and interviews will: 1) obtain feedback on how agencies implement the provisions in their Citizen’s Charter; 2) gather information/estimates of hidden costs incurred by clients in availing frontline services; and 3) rate agency performance and client satisfaction in relation to frontline service delivery and fulfillment of provisions of the Anti-Red Tape Act (ARTA).   At present, the Citizen’s Charter is one of the parameters used in determining whether good governance conditions set by the Department of Budget and Management are met. This decides on the civil servant’s performance based bonus.   The other conditions are whether or not a department obtains at least 90 percent of Major Final Output (MFO) and Priority Program targets imposed by the Key Result Areas specified in Executive Order No. 43. Another one is whether good governance conditions set by the inter-agency task force created by Administrative Order No. 25 is achieved.   A performance based bonus will range from P5,000 to P35,000, depending on individual and collective performances.   “Yung ngayon, simple lang ang requirement natin, you should have a Citizen’s Charter, ano ang commitment mo to them when it comes to frontline services,” Esber said, “Next year, [people’s] rating na, stiffer standard na tayo.” “‘O, Juan dela Cruz, kumusta ang serbisyo ng LGU na ‘to?’ They know na merong magkokomentaryo, merong magre-rate sa kanila, not the CSC but the people,” she added.   However, Esber noted that government agencies are improving their services even without the people’s ratings. Especially improved are agencies that previously received a failing mark from the CSC. — DVM, GMA News