*Update 19.02.2025: ‘By default, all [internal] competitions will be cross-category.’ (Stay tuned: A new approach for internal competitions [1]) This is excellent news and should now put the Commission on an even footing with the Parliament and other EU institutions [2]. We hope that this inclusion is genuine and that the competitions are not otherwise skewed [3] to reduce participation.*
Generation 2004 invites you to a 90-minute lunchtime conference dedicated to the ongoing review of talent management within the institutions: particulary in relation to colleauges in the Assistant (AST [4]) and Secretaries and Clerks (AST/SC [5]) function groups.
The slides and presentation will be made available here on this page after the event.
You are more than welcome to join us on
Thursday, 20 February
12.30 (CET)
[6]
Following our conference [7] on 22 November 2024, we want to update you on the issues the announced New Recruitment Model [8] might address …. and the issues it might leave behind:
- Mr Quest makes no mention of internal competitions for ASTs [8]
- 7 of our original list of 8 AST/SC [9] areas of concern remain unaddressed
- the falling numbers of ASTs: is this a gradual phasing out? [10]
- why is there still no certification for AST/SC staff [11]?
- why is there still no evaluation of the 19 certification exercises [12] so far?
- why are AD tasks other than people-management not acknowledged even when there are published lists of function group tasks [13]?
- the ongoing recruitment of very qualified staff to ostensibly ‘junior’ roles (‘juniorisation [14]‘)
- the skewing of internal competition criteria [3] to exclude staff not in cabinets
- the 8 problems [9] we outlined with AST/SC function group are shown to be even more pronounced [15] than anticipated (here too [16]), leading us to ask whether this is by accident or design [17].
It happened: ECA backs us!
We’ve been making noise for some time about the artificial barriers to internal competitions [2] which are present in the Commission but not elsewhere. Now change is promised, we want it to be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound (SMART)?
Look what we can achieve together!
As always, we would love to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us [18] or leave a comment below.
If you appreciate our work, please consider becoming a member of Generation 2004 [19].
toolTips('.classtoolTips28','The practice of recruiting people to lower grades and salaries than would have been the case pre-2004 and pre-2014. E.g. for AD5 and AD6, nominally \'entry\' level :‘…62 % [of recently recruited administrator officials] were over 40, which makes it likely that they already had at least 10 years of professional experience when they joined the institutions, more than what is usually required for the grades of the competitions.’ p.19 European Court of Auditors, Special Report 23/2020 [20]'); toolTips('.classtoolTips47','Trade union or staff association (OSP) [Organisation syndicale et professionnelle]');
\'These minimum education requirements [for AST and AST/SC function groups] have barely changed from the first version of the staff regulations in 196218, which referred to an advanced level of secondary education or equivalent professional experience [...] These requirements are out of step with the current level of educational attainment in the EU where over 75 % of the EU population has at least completed secondary education, and 30 % has completed university studies1. As a result, staff in the SC and AST function groups may often have qualifications that are not aligned with their job requirements. This can lead to demotivation and have an impact on staff performance.\' Paragraphs 92 and 93 European Court of Auditors, Special Report 24/2024 [21]