No 18 of 2005 - Civil Service Regulation (Amendment) Act 2005

What does this law do?

The main purpose of this Bill is to amend the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956 in order to allow certain provisions contained in the Public Service Management Act 1997 to take effect.

The Public Service Management Act 1997 introduced the broad framework for modern management practices in the Civil Service.  That Act established a framework within which, subject to the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956, managerial responsibility, including powers of dismissal, for staff below the level of Principal Officer would be given to Secretaries General.  The Public Service Management Act also envisaged that Secretaries General could delegate most personnel functions, other than dismissal, to senior civil servants.  However, the practical implementation of these powers and functions is constrained by the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956, which reserves most disciplinary functions to Ministers.  The Bill will remove those constraints. 

Generally, each Secretary General or Head of a Scheduled Office will be responsible, by virtue of being the "appropriate authority," for managing all matters pertaining to appointments, performance, discipline and dismissal of civil servants below Principal Officer level.  Each Minister will be the appropriate authority for civil servants at and above Principal level.  The Bill, as published, amends various Acts to introduce the following Human Resources Management (HRM) changes:

  • civil servants (as office holders), other than those dismissed by Government, will be brought within the scope of the Unfair Dismissals Acts;
  • civil servants (as office holders), will be brought within the scope of the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts;
  • disciplinary action may be taken in cases of underperformance;
  • any suspension pending the conclusion of a disciplinary investigation will be suspension on full pay;
  • the range of possible disciplinary sanctions will be broadened to include suspension without pay;
  • people aged over 65 years may be engaged as civil servants.

Contact Department: Department of Finance

Signed by the President on: 9/7/2005

Full version of the Civil Service Regulation (Amendment) Act 2005 on the Oireachtas website