TI BiH discovered new abuses in recruitment process: Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs of RS issued illegal work experience certificates

Upon the report of TI BiH, the administrative inspectors have found that the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs of RS had employed several persons based on the work experience certificate which were illegally issued, and ordered the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs to annul all controversial decisions on employment.

Banja Luka, 4th May 2017 — Transparency International in BiH (TI BiH) acted upon the report received through the TI BiH Center for legal advice in anti-corruption fight and found abuses in recruitment process in the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs of RS. This institution has issued the certificates on work experience to several persons on the basis of the temporary service contract concluded with the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs, although this is not in compliance with the Labour Law. Controversial certificates have been issued for different purposes, and additional problem is the fact that those persons based on illegal work experience certificates met the requirements for taking professional exam for the work in public administration.
Reacting upon the report, TI BiH requested the opinion from the Civil Service Agency of RS, the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the Ministry of Labour and Veterans, and all three institutions confirmed that, having in mind the provisions of the Labour Law, the engagement based on the temporary service contract „cannot be the taken as the basis for acquiring work experience in the republic administrative bodies“.
TI BiH then submitted to the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs a request for inspection control, which has shown the violation of several provisions, including the Regulation on the professional exam for the work in the administrative bodies. The inspectors ordered the Republic administration for geodetic and property affairs to annul the decisions on employment for five reported persons that contrary to the current regulations have been issued work experience certificates based on previously concluded temporary service contracts, and thus confirmed the allegations from the anonymous report upon which TI BiH acted.
The Supreme Office for the Republic of Srpska Public Sector Auditing has recently presented during the performance audit the alarming findings on the engagement of natural persons without concluding contract on employment with the administrative bodies, emphasizing that persons engaged in this way are elected in a non-transparent way, and that temporary service contracts concluded with them are not appropriate because they often establish employer-employee relationship. The practice of issuing work experience certificate based on the temporary service contract determined by TI BiH only confirmed the audit findings indicating another model of illegal employment in the public administration that favoured certain persons by the inappropriate application of the regulations.

Press rls 4.5.2017.