PUTRAJAYA: The Public Service Department (JPA) is conducting a study to provide opportunities for lower-ranking civil servants with higher academic qualifications, such as diplomas and degrees, to be promoted under Phase 2 of the Public Service Remuneration System (SSPA).
The Public Service director-general, Tan Sri Wan Ahmad Dahlan Abdul Aziz, said the study includes demands made by the Union of Clerical and Allied Public Service Employees (AUEGCAS).
"Regarding the demands of AUEGCAS, I would like to state that JPA has reviewed the matter before the implementation of SSPA. In fact, several engagement sessions were held, and explanations were given in various meetings and discussions.
"For your information, reviews and improvements are continuously carried out. The demands of AUEGCAS to provide opportunities for civil servants with academic qualifications such as diplomas and degrees to be promoted are under review in Phase 2 of SSPA," he told BH yesterday.
He was commenting on the statement by AUEGCAS secretary-general, Amir Hamzah Yakat Ali, who claimed that about 350,000 administrative assistants in the public sector remain at the Entry Grade 1 of the Public Service Remuneration System (SSPA) or Grade 19 of the Malaysian Remuneration System (SSM), causing their career paths to be blocked with low salary scales.
Amir Hamzah said that the situation involves administrative assistants in the public sector's administrative and financial tasks, including Administrative Assistants (Clerical/Operations), Administrative Assistants (Finance), Customer Service Officers, Assistant Accountants, Office Secretarial Assistants, and Student Management Assistants.
This is because, since 1950, the appointment criteria for administrative assistants have used the Malaysian Certificate of Education (SPM), and this criterion remains until now, even though civil servants now perform high-level tasks, and many of them also have Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) qualifications, diplomas, bachelor's degrees, as well as extensive work experience.
He said the situation causes their career paths to be blocked with low salary scales, in addition to facing supervisory grade overlaps.
Following this, he said, AUEGCAS is demanding the government review SSPA by improving the Administrative Assistant Service Scheme for the prosperity and harmony of 350,000 civil servants nationwide.
"Among the improvements to the scheme that need to be made is changing the appointment criteria for administrative assistants, which still uses SPM since the 1950s, to the Malaysian Higher School Certificate (STPM), diploma or equivalent.
"We have been voicing this issue for over 20 years through papers and engagement sessions to change our appointment criteria from SPM to STPM or diploma and equivalent, but until now, it has not been realised," he claimed.
Amir Hamzah said the tasks of administrative assistants are increasingly demanding and require multiple skills because their responsibilities are no longer limited to basic administrative tasks but also include various fields requiring specific expertise.
"The scope of administrative assistant tasks is becoming broader, similar to that of assistant administrative officers. We are trained to be proficient in legislation, circulars, and regulations to ensure that every government policy is implemented effectively.
"The academic qualifications and skills of administrative assistants are fully utilised by their respective departments, but they are not adequately recognised in terms of promotions and appropriate salary scales," he said.
Therefore, he asked JPA to re-evaluate the administrative assistant job scheme and consider promoting them to the grade of Assistant Administrative Officer N29 under SSM or Grade N5 SSPA to ensure the scheme remains relevant to current developments and meets departmental needs.
Commenting further, Wan Ahmad Dahlan described the AUEGCAS claims as somewhat misleading and asked officers in the scheme to contact JPA for detailed explanations, in addition to checking the benefits they have received following the new salary adjustments through the salary calculator provided on the SSPA portal.
"In addition, employees in this service scheme can apply for Advancement by Appointment (PSL) to a higher qualification service scheme, whether at the diploma, STPM, or Bachelor's Degree level.
"Applications can be made to the Appointing Authority (PBM) to fill vacancies suitable for their academic qualifications," he said.
Therefore, Wan Ahmad Dahlan said, JPA continuously pays attention and studies the demands from any group of civil servants through various sources, including social media.
"For example, during the SSPA study, JPA created a special portal for all civil servants to express their desires and requests for system improvements," he said.