Agreement reached on public sector performance appraisal system

In addition to the reforms taking place employment relations, careers and mobility in the public sector, a new performance appraisal system has been under negotiation. The government and the two trade unions affiliated to the General Workers’ Union have reached an agreement on the appraisal system. However, the Common Front of Public Administration Unions did not sign the agreement. The new appraisal system will come into force in January 2008.

A new system of performance appraisal has been under negotiation between the government and the trade unions represented in the public sector, in addition to the ongoing reform of employment relations, careers and mobility in the sector (PT0705019I, PT0706069I) The negotiations led to an agreement, reached on 10 July 2007, between the government and the two trade unions affiliated to the General Workers’ Union (União Geral de Trabalhadores, UGT) – the Trade Union Front of Public Administration (Frente Sindical da Administração Pública, FESAP) and the Technical Civil Servants’ Union (Sindicato dos Quadros Técnicos do Estado, STE). The Common Front of Public Administration Unions (Frente Comum dos Sindicatos da Administração Pública, FC), affiliated to the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (Confederação Geral dos Trabalhadores Portugueses, CGTP), which is the most powerful trade union coalition in the public sector, did not sign the agreement. The new system of performance appraisal will come into effect from January 2008.

Strengthening worker participation

The trade unions have succeeded in strengthening the participation of workers in the appraisal process, through the creation of bipartite committees in which trade unions will be represented. In addition, workers will have the opportunity to monitor the appraisal process and be entitled to demand meetings and demand the reformulation of objectives. According to the trade unions, they have also succeeded in making the appraisal process more transparent, thereby avoiding abuse of the system or any injustice to workers.

Disagreement over quotas system

One of the major issues which arose in the negotiations was the government’s proposal to retain the system of quotas that has been in place since 2004. Based on this system, a limit for higher evaluations has been set: only 25% of the workers in each service can gain a ‘relevant performance’ evaluation, and among this group only 5% can gain an ‘excellent performance’ evaluation. The government did not relent on this proposal and added a new rule, which is linked to the services appraisal. This new rule was introduced because, at present, only workers and not the services are assessed. The new rule establishes that, in about 20% of the services deemed as ‘excellent’, the abovementioned quotas would be 35% and 5%, respectively.

All of the trade unions represented in the public sector, including FESAP and STE, have expressed strong disagreement with the quotas system. Although they signed the agreement, both trade unions clearly expressed their disagreement on this point, according to the minutes of the agreement signed by the parties. The trade unions argue that ‘the quotas can limit the performance appraisal, leaving room for injustices and a lack of motivation among workers in the public sector’. Conversely, the government considers that ‘this mechanism of operationalisation of the principle of performance differentiation is crucial for the promotion of a culture of exigency in the performance of public services’.

FC refuses to sign agreement

FC refused to sign the agreement on the grounds that the system of quotas is unacceptable. The coalition believed that the proposal was an improvement but that the more negative issues, particularly the quotas system, still remain. FC highlights that this is a disadvantageous system for 75% of public sector workers and that workers can stay in the same wage grade for up to 10 years.

Maria da Paz Campos Lima and Reinhard Naumann, Dinâmia