The signing of performance agreements with managers The new performance agreements in the public service introduce the notion of performance related-pay for senior managers. They de-link the salaries of senior managers from the collective bargaining process and require the alignment of individual work plans with departmental strategic objectives. The targeted downsizing of government by focusing on service delivery As part of last years salary improvement package, the government reached an agreement with the public-service unions about the need to gather accurate information about service objectives and the skills needed to meet these objectives. On this basis, we can establish a better match between staffing levels and new policies. The process has already begun in the Northern Province and the Eastern Cape, and we expect an initial overview of the situation by the end of March this year.
Experience indicates that alternatives to retrenchment can be effective.
The public service has shrunk by 10 per cent since 1994. This decline in size is primarily due to the restructuring of departments. As departments have restructured they have eliminated vacant positions and re-deployed redundant personnel. Involuntary retrenchment is an expense option. The government cannot afford to pay out involuntary retrenchment packages in the public service that are equivalent to those in the private sector.