Civil service in the United States of America

Ø 1) Read the text and say what these numbers refer to: 1872, 1883, 1978, 1, 300, 16%, $71, 208, 24.

In the United States, the civil service was established in 1872. The Federal Civil Service was defined as “all appointive positions in the executive, judicial, and legislative branches of the Government of the United States, except positions in the uniformed services.”

At first, government jobs were held at the pleasure of the President. It meant that a civil servant could be fired at any time. “The spoils system” meant that jobs were used to support the political parties. This was changed slowly by the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 and subsequent laws.

In 1883 the US Civil Service Commission was created. It was created to administer the civil service of the US federal government in response to the assassination of President James Garfield. The law required certain applicants to take the civil service exam in order to be given certain jobs. It also did not allow elected officials and political appointees to fire civil servants.

The work of the US Civil Service Commission was mainly restricted to the lower grades of employment. Only in the 1920s the merit system of recruitment was expanded to cover half the posts in the federal service. After that period the commission’s control gradually increased, mainly over the lower, middle, and managerial offices in the federal service.

Effective January 1, 1978, the US Civil Service Commission was reorganized into the Office of Personnel Management, the Federal Labor Relations Authority, and the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board. The first office primarily provides management guidance to the various agencies of the executive branch and issues regulations that control federal human resources. The second authority oversees the rights of federal employees to form collective bargaining unions. The third board conducts studies of the federal civil service and mainly hears the appeals of federal employees who are disciplined or otherwise separated from their positions.

By 1909, almost two-thirds of the U.S. federal work force was appointed based on merit, that is, qualifications measured by tests. Certain senior civil service positions, including some heads of diplomatic missions and executive agencies are, however, filled by political appointees. Under the Hatch Act of 1939, civil servants are not allowed to engage in political activities while performing their duties.

The U.S. civil service includes the Competitive service and the Excepted service. The majority of civil service appointments in the U.S. are made under the Competitive Service, but certain categories in the Diplomatic Service, the FBI, and other National Security positions are made under the Excepted Service. U.S. state and local government entities often have competitive civil service systems that are modeled on the national system, in varying degrees.

Employees in the US civil services work under one of the independent agencies or one of the 15 executive departments. In addition to departments, there is a number of staff organizations grouped into the Executive Office of the President (the White House staff, the National Security Council, the Office of Management and Budget, and others).

There are also independent agencies such as the United States Postal Service, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the United States Agency for International Development. In addition, there are government-owned corporations such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.

The Federal Government is the nation’s single largest employer. There are over 1, 300 federal government agencies. Although most federal agencies are based in the Washington, D.C. region, only about 16% of the federal government workforce is employed in this region.

Many people believe that civil service is among the most secure work environments, that’s why jobs in government are highly sought after. Excellent retirement and health benefits are what attract many people to these jobs. The average federal worker’s pay was $71, 208 compared with $40, 331 in the private sector. 19% of federal employees earned salaries of $100, 000 or more in 2009. Basic pay rates for Senior Executive Service, i.e. those above GS-15, ranged from $140, 000 to $190, 000, excluding the cost of living adjustments.

Over the last several years, the Federal government has made it relatively simple to search for a job within their system. The Office of Personnel Management developed USAJOBS. USAJOBS is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and consists of a website and an automated telephone system. Job seekers can view or listen to job vacancies, download or request applications and other forms, and get the facts about Federal employment.

Unfortunately, there isn’t an official centralized location like this for finding state and local jobs all listed in one place. However, such information can be found on special websites. One can also check the blue pages of a telephone book to see if there is a civil service commission or a personnel or human resources department listed.

Ø 2) Define the terms: “the spoils system, ” “the merit system, ” “USAJOBS.”

Ø 3) Find the peculiarities of American civil service in comparison with Russian civil service.

Ø 4) Make a plan of the text and talk about the development of American civil service.