More than half of complaints about public service hiring practices found valid in 2021

The Commission for Public Service Appointments recommended ensuring all interview board members are fully trained in the tone and manner they should use when conducting a job interview. File picture

Over half of complaints received last year about hiring practices in the public service were deemed valid, with An Garda Síochána and the HSE the focus of most grievances.

The Commission for Public Service Appointments said over one-third (36%) of the cases it investigated identified breaches of the “code of practice” whereby appointments to the public service should be made, while the majority of cases noted other failings.

In one specific case, a worker who was selected to take up a new job disclosed his disability at the clearance stage, alleged a “lack of communication” for five months, and then had the job offer rescinded.

In cases where breaches were identified, the commission found deficiencies in maintaining communication with candidates, failing to advise them of review and appeal procedures, and cases where no assessments were made on how a candidate measured up to specific requirements for the job.

It made recommendations to public bodies on how to improve its processes, as “some aspects of the selection process fell below the standards we would like to see”. It included ensuring all interview board members are fully trained in the tone and manner they should use when conducting a job interview.

In the case of the man who disclosed his disability, he submitted details of the required accommodations he would need at work after he was successful with his job application. He alleged that five months later he had the job offer rescinded with no “clear explanation or justification” for the retraction.

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The man also alleged “it was unfair to place responsibility on him as a candidate to contact service managers regarding whether or not positions offered to him were suitable with regard to the particular accommodations he needed arising from his disability”.

The commission found that the public body did not breach codes of practice in retracting the offer but found its lack of communication over a period of months did breach such practices. 

It ordered the body to update candidates as to what is being done to accommodate them and said no start date or contract offer should be given until they are sure the candidate can be catered for.