You surely have already heard about acquired rights. All of us acquire one or the other right in the course of our professional life. For example, you acquire pension rights according to the accrual rate applying to you [1]. You also acquire the right to follow a certain career path on the event of your recruitment, which follows some selection procedure such as an open competition. This procedure determines, in which part of the EU “caste system” you end up. Your qualifications, experience and abilities only count to the extent that you fulfil some minimum criteria to gain admission to the respective selection procedure. It also will not matter that much what tasks you will carry out in the end. Possibilities for breaking out of your own caste are rather limited.
Acquired rights are there to protect you against worsening your situation. However, the rigid caste system that prevails in the Commission staff policy can turn these rights also against you so that they become rather acquired disadvantages.
Example 1: AST/SC
With the 2014 reform of the staff regulations, a new staff category arose, the secretary/clerk (AST/SC). Posts that were turned with the 2004 reform of the Staff Regulations to normal assistant (AST) posts were again redefined and became AST/SC. While after 2004, several colleagues basically kept their “labels” on paper as “ex/C” and got blocked at grade AST7, they could at least profit from a faster career progress through the unification of the assistant group. New recruits were classified simply as assistants starting at AST1 or AST3 levels and can progress up to the highest AST grades independently of the type of post that they occupy. This applies in particular to colleagues who were recruited at AST1. Their acquired rights protect them to slip down to the lower career path of an AST/SC (and we very much welcome this!) as they will stay assistants in transition as long as they find a “true” assistant position to become assistants or retire. Colleagues who have been recruited as AST/SC since 2015 will remain AST/SC with no prospects to break out of this caste no matter what tasks they carry out. Furthermore, to add insult to injury, a high number of these colleagues assume responsibilities that are confirmed in their assessment reports to be the tasks of regular assistants (or even administrators (AD)!).
Example 2: AST/D
The 2004 reform left behind another category of assistants: the AST/D [2]. They have been left out from the amalgamation of assistant categories. They kept their slow career paths and still keep being blocked at grade AST5. (Please note that the average seniority in AST/D4 is 10 years!) There are not a very large number of colleagues anymore in this situation, but for them there is no way out of this trap of acquired disadvantage, again, no matter what tasks they carry out or responsibilities they assume. In many cases, they carry out the same work as any other assistant without having the same career progression. Attestation [3] possibilities existed in the past but were stopped before all individual cases at the Commission were examined. The onus to do the right thing is on the Commission: the European Parliament made a simple procedure and transformed all AST/D colleagues to AST/C.
Example 3: qualified teachers
Educators in the childcare centres operated by the Commission are recruited as Contract Agents (3a) in function group (FG) II step 5 without the requirement of having a relevant qualification or professional experience. This is insofar understandable that it would be a shame to pay such low salaries to qualified teachers. But this was not always like this! Probably only after seeing that, especially in Luxembourg, the salary is not attractive for qualified teachers who know more than their mother tongue and it is almost impossible to recruit qualified staff, the recruitment rules were changed in 2017, lowering the requirements. What happened then to the colleagues who were recruited before 2017? At that time, even qualified teachers were recruited at FG II step 4 if they did not have sufficient experience. After several years working for the Commission, they may have been already reclassified to step 5. Otherwise, nothing changed, they have kept their acquired disadvantages and now see their education and professional experience (made inside the Commission) worth… nothing! A screening exercise could help remedy their situation, but such an exercise was so far only carried out as a pilot for other contract agents in Luxembourg after more than 10 years of existence of this staff category.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact us.
[1] ‘Annual accrual rate of pension rights: The rate at which an employee build up pension benefits whilst working (2 %, 1.9 % or 1.8 % per year). For example, an annual accrual rate of 2 % means that, for each year of service, the employee accumulates 2 % of pension benefits.’ ECA, 2019, Special report no 15/2019: Implementation of the 2014 staff reform package at the Commission – Big savings but not without consequences for staff
Check out how the age of retirement and pension accrual rate change with each reform of the Staff Regulations (Slide 13).
[2] In the pre-2004 Commission there were 4 staff function groups: A, Administrators: B, Assistants: C, secretaries and clerks and D, those carrying out manual roles e.g. ushers or drivers (Slide 4, Slide 5). With the 2004 reform of the Staff Regulations groups B, C and D became ASTs, but with limitations: C (AST 1-7) , D (AST 1-5) (Slide 8).
[3] ‘The attestation procedure is intended to offer certain C* and D* officials in service before 1 May 2004 the chance to be promoted beyond grades AST7 and AST5 respectively. The purpose of the certification procedure is to allow certain AST function group officials to be appointed as AD function group officials.’ (p.4, 2005).
