JULY 2014 – Dirty games and money for nothing (or “NEPOTISM REDEFINED” for the more discerning): How the EC used the veil of an internal competition to parachute the well-connected into top positions

The first results of the internal competitions were published on the Commission intranet. Hey ho! Like every fifth year it is again parachute-jumping season in the European Commission. Our HR pros, who say of themselves: “Our staff are dedicated to making the civil service of the European Union a modern, effective and dynamic organisation, fit for the challenges of the 21st century”, have again found a way to hand out the silken parachutes to the privileged few. Continue reading Dirty games and money for nothing →

JUNE 2014 – Cucumbers and grapes: How we should use the promotion system to strengthen fairness, reward performance and reduce inequality in the EU institutions

Come spring and summer it is again promotion time in the EU institutions. This year’s promotion exercise is the first one under the new staff regulations. From 2014 staff with high grades (AD12-AD13 and AST9) can benefit from promotions only through nominations. However, somewhat paradoxically, the promotion rates specified in Annex IB of the staff regulation still apply, also to these high grades. This means that on the basis of these fixed percentages applied to the reference population of staff, specific promotion quotas are allocated to these grades (really it is “a bit” complicated than that, but we’re sure you get the picture…). Continue reading Cucumbers and grapes →