scholarly journals Towards a Representative Bureaucracy: Promoting Linguistic Representation and Diversity in the Swiss and Canadian Federal Public Services

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kübler ◽  
Émilienne Kobelt ◽  
Stephanie Andrey
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Consociational Democracy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Adequate Representation ◽  
Administrative Units ◽  
Federal Public Service ◽  
Linguistic Communities

AbstractDrawing on the concept of representative bureaucracy, this article examines how two multilingual states – Canada and Switzerland – deal with issues related to the participation of different linguistic communities in the federal public service. Following a political mobilization of the linguistic cleavage, strategies to promote multilingualism in the public service have been adopted in both countries. The Canadian strategy focuses on equal treatment of Anglophones and Francophones in the public service. In Switzerland, adequate representation of the linguistic communities is the primary goal. These differences are explained by the characteristics of the linguistic regimes in each of the two countries as well as by the peculiarities of consociational democracy in Switzerland. In both countries, the linguistic origins of public administration staff, overall, mirrors the proportions of the linguistic communities in the wider society. Within administrative units, however, linguistic diversity is hampered by the logics of language rationalization, where minorities are under pressure to communicate in the language of the majority.

scholarly journals Vers une bureaucratie représentative. La promotion de la représentation et de la diversité linguistiques dans l'administration fédérale en Suisse et au Canada

2011 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 903-927 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kübler ◽  
Émilienne Kobelt ◽  
Stephanie Andrey
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Consociational Democracy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Groupes Minoritaires ◽  
Adequate Representation ◽  
Administrative Units ◽  
Fonction Publique ◽  
Linguistic Communities

Résumé. Sous l'angle du concept de bureaucratie représentative, le présent article compare la gestion des enjeux liés à la participation des différentes communautés linguistiques dans l'administration publique de deux États multilingues : le Canada et la Suisse. À la suite de la mobilisation politique autour du clivage linguistique, des stratégies de promotion du plurilinguisme ont été adoptées dans les deux pays. La stratégie canadienne mise sur l'égalité de traitement des fonctionnaires anglophones et francophones. La Suisse poursuit quant à elle l'objectif de la représentation des différentes communautés linguistiques dans la fonction publique. Ces différences de fond s'expliquent, entre autres, par la nature du régime linguistique en place et par le contexte de démocratie consociationnelle en Suisse. La participation proportionnelle des communautés linguistiques au sein de l'administration fédérale est globalement atteinte dans les deux pays. Cependant, au niveau du fonctionnement interne, une logique de rationalité linguistique exerce une pression sur les groupes minoritaires pour qu'ils adoptent la langue majoritaire.Abstract. Drawing on the concept of representative bureaucracy, this article examines how two multi-lingual states—Canada and Switzerland—deal with issues related to the participation of different linguistic communities in the federal public service. Following a political mobilisation of the linguistic cleavage, strategies to promote multilingualism in the public service have been adopted in both countries. The Canadian strategy focuses on equal treatment of Anglophones and Francophones in the public service. In Switzerland, adequate representation of the linguistic communities is the primary goal. These differences are explained by the characteristics of the linguistic regimes in each of the two countries, as well as by the peculiarities of consociational democracy in Switzerland. In both countries, the linguistic origins of public administration staff, overall, mirrors the proportions of the linguistic communities in the wider society. Within administrative units, however, linguistic diversity is hampered by the logics of language rationality, where minorities are under pressure to communicate in the language of the majority.

“Representative bureaucracy as a leadership issue: the Canadian case”

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-410
Author(s):  
Tim A. Mau
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Gender Representation ◽  
Administrative Leadership ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Sector Leadership ◽  
Federal Public Service

PurposeThe public administration literature on representative bureaucracy identifies several advantages from having a diverse public service workforce, but it has not explicitly focused on leadership. For its part, the public sector leadership literature has largely ignored the issue of gender. The purpose of this paper is to rectify these limitations by advancing the argument that having a representative bureaucracy is fundamentally a leadership issue. Moreover, it assesses the extent to which representativeness has been achieved in the Canadian federal public service.Design/methodology/approachThe paper begins with a discussion of the importance of a representative bureaucracy for democratic governance. In the next section, the case is made that representativeness is fundamentally intertwined with the concept of administrative leadership. Then, the article provides an interpretive case study analysis of the federal public service in Canada, which is the global leader in terms of women's representation in public service leadership positions.FindingsThe initial breakthrough for gender representation in the Canadian federal public service was 1995. From that point onward, the proportion of women in the core public administration exceeded workforce availability. However, women continued to be modestly under-represented among the senior leadership cadre throughout the early 2000s. The watershed moment for gender representation in the federal public service was 2011 when the number of women in the executive group exceeded workforce availability for the first time. Significant progress toward greater representativeness in the other target groups has also been made but ongoing vigilance is required.Research limitations/implicationsThe study only determines the passive representation of women in the Public Service of Canada and is not able to comment on the extent to which women are substantively represented in federal policy outcomes.Originality/valueThe paper traces the Canadian federal government's progress toward achieving gender representation over time, while commenting on the extent to which the public service reflects broader diversity. In doing so, it explicitly links representation to leadership, which the existing literature fails to do, by arguing that effective administrative leadership is contingent upon having a diverse public service. Moreover, it highlights the importance of gender for public sector leadership, which hitherto has been neglected.

Restructuring the Public Service—The Integration of Data Entry and Clerical Areas

1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 420-435 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Whyte
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Data Entry ◽  
Work Design ◽  
Quality Of Work Life ◽  
The Public ◽  
Work Area ◽  
Wage Agreement ◽  
Second Tier ◽  
The Government ◽  
Federal Public Service

The 1987 second-tier wage agreement between the federal public service and the government provided for the restructuring of employment in the public service, including the integration of job classifications and extensive job redesign. This paper is based on research, conducted within a department of the federal public service, into the process of integrating data entry processors and their functions into the mainstream clerical work area. It also examines the wider process of participative work design, in particular its ability to provide a mechanism for worker participation and to improve the workers' quality of work life. In terms of the integration of data entry and clerical streams the process has been very successful. There is some dissatisfaction and disenchantment on the part of some clerks, but for most workers it has provided positive and worthwhile improvements in job satisfaction. In terms of the participative work design, the process has been less successful, although it seems to have contributed to a shift in organizational culture toward increased participation and consultation with workers.

scholarly journals The Public Service Staff Relations Board

2005 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 628-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Gray Gillespie
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Third Party ◽  
The Public ◽  
Service Staff ◽  
Staff Relations ◽  
Federal Public Service

This paper is primarily an attempt to describe the organization, functions, and influence of the neutral third-party agency in the Federal Public Service collective bargaining system.

scholarly journals Instruction in a holistic approach to discrimination

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nándor Makkos
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Public Services ◽  
Sleep Problems ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Physical Assault ◽  
Psychosocial Risks ◽  
The Public ◽  
Social Authority

Administrative activity is present in all walks of life and it has a universal character nowadays. This article has been tabled to draw attention to the discriminatory erosions that sometimes appear as a hiding place in public administration, which may appear as minor deviations in childhood, but may lead to disintegration of organizational unit in adulthood. On the other hand, however, the quality of life of workers is impaired because workers exposed to psychosocial risks show significantly higher levels of health risk than those who are not. The most common symptoms are stress, sleep problems, fatigue and depression (URL1). I have tried to approach the relationship between instruction and discrimination holistically, from the slightest socialization error of man to the most serious crime. I believe that a person's discriminatory behavior is characterized by the inclusion of the milder deviations of a person to the more serious ones. Genocide certainly involves its four milder stages, the physical assault transmission, discrimination, verbal expression, and discriminatory thought. We have drawn attention to the harmful effects of ’invisible’ in its form, but abnormal in its content. Perhaps avoidance is one of the most insidious behaviors of our time, which, by distorting personality in childhood, can put its mark on the daily life and public service of an adult. In the case of discrimination, sanctions of a non-legal nature which undermine the offender's social authority may also be significant, e.g. mocking, exasperation, appearance, speaking, which are more common than legal sanctions and can cause a great deal of torment to the perpetrator and his environment, we need anti-instructional discrimination in the public sector to ensure good public services and well-being of public service employees. In the bureaucratic system, it is precise regulation that can be used to combat discrimination by instruction, because it not only serves to coordinate and fix the best method, but also ensures standardized, equal treatment of individual cases (Gajduschek, 2000, 44.). It is also worth noting that enforcing the prohibition of discrimination, its principles, its loyalty, impartiality, responsibility or professionalism, and the confidence of users of public services in the public service is in the interests of professional administration.

Enhancing leadership capacity in the public sector: branding as an employer of choice

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 155-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim A. Mau
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Leadership Capacity ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Case Study Analysis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Private Sector Organizations ◽  
Employer Of Choice ◽  
Federal Public Service

Purpose Public services around the world are grappling to enhance their leadership capacity. One approach is to provide leadership training and development to public servants, while another would be to target and hire individuals with proven leadership ability. The purpose of this paper is to focus on that latter strategy by critically examining the concept of branding the public service as an employer of choice as a means of recruiting and retaining sufficient leadership capacity. Design/methodology/approach The paper begins by outlining the challenge faced by governments to recruit the best and brightest employees into the public service. It then reviews the literature on the concept of branding as an employer of choice, including its perceived advantages and limitations, before undertaking a case study analysis of the 2007 public sector branding initiative of the Canadian federal government. Findings It is very difficult to develop a single, master brand given the diversity and complexity of the hundreds of organizations that comprise the public sector. While it may be a popular concept for private sector organizations, the concept of branding the public sector as an employer of choice has yet to demonstrate its merit. Canada, which was ostensibly the vanguard in terms of public sector branding, has been unable to position the federal public service as an employer of choice. Originality/value There is very little research on the use of branding as an employer of choice in the public sector. This paper contributes to the knowledge about the limitations of such strategies for ensuring that the public sector has the requisite leadership capacity.

A Unified Foreign Service

1922 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 600-611
Author(s):  
Samuel MacClintock
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Fiscal Year ◽  
Foreign Service ◽  
The Public ◽  
Business Interests ◽  
Adequate Representation ◽  
The One ◽  
Almost All

Our government maintains a large and expensive foreign service. The business interests of the country recognize the value of adequate representation abroad and support vigorously measures intended to improve and expand this field. For the fiscal year 1922–23 Congress has increased the appropriations for this branch of the public service while cutting down almost all domestic expenditures.Our service in the foreign field has only one rival in its completeness and effectiveness, and that naturally is Great Britain's. Before the war comparison was often made with Germany, France, Japan and other nations, and critics could point to individual excellencies in all of these; but they in turn were generous in praise of our service and generally accorded it first rank, especially on its promotional side. The one outstanding weakness of this service at the present time is its lack of unity, resulting in duplicate activities, rivalries, uncertainties to those using the service and needless expense to the taxpayers.

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