In her committee report, Pangelinan quoted 1 CMC, Section 8135 which states that full-time employee positions that are not filled within 180 days should be eliminated, except for the public school and health systems.
The regulation is not being observed as “reflected in all personnel sheets of the budget proposal,” the senator said. “Positions long empty continue to be carried forward irrespective of the last date the positions were vacated.”
She wants to see, “once and for all…[the] total number of government employees that we can monitor.”
Her recommendation includes the elimination of all unfunded full-time employee positions according to the requirement of 1 CMC Sec. 8135 to reduce government personnel costs on a more permanent basis.
In a recent interview, Pangelinan said her office will try to establish a system of monitoring government employment process.
The government should first address the inaccuracies in civil service job titles and position codes that do not appear on the Civil Service position list, she suggests.
“It seems to point to a systematic pattern of circumventing the Civil Service system for two purposes: to hire for particular position and assign a salary above the grade approved by the civil service, [or] to assign a salary lower than the approved grade,” Pangelinan said.
Senate Floor Leader Jude U. Hofschneider, R-Tinian, echoed Pangelinan’s concern, saying “employees are being hired left and right” despite the tight budget.
He wants to know whether some job positions are budgeted, or even authorized by law.
The governor has requested a budget of $158.4 million for fiscal year 2009 which also calls for the implementation of certain cost-cutting measures.
