Speaking to reporters at the Presidential Palace after the meeting of the Council of Ministers, Mr. Petridis said that "five bills approved today by the Council of Ministers concerning the reform of the Public Service.
I believe that there are five bills, the implementation of which from 1/1/2017 will radically change the physiognomy of the Public Service, but it is very important that they will ensure the sustainability of public finances, without having to resort to any in the future reductions or tax increases and to avoid re-escaping the state payroll and budget.
I hope that these bills will be voted by the Parliament. There is an agreement with the civil servants' union regarding the structural changes proposed by the bills.
Reform is an ongoing process. It will continue. As of today, our priority is other reforms that will increase the service of the Public Service to the citizen and businesses and will also have a developmental tone. These are radical changes and in this way we will continue in the future. "
Asked if the Government has considered the time when the restrictions on Public Service will be lifted in terms of recruitment, promotions, increases and more, Mr. Petridis answered "yes, our goal is to return to normal as soon as possible." possible. In parallel with the submission of the bills, we are working on a plan for the gradual de-icing of the promotions, so that with the implementation of the new state payroll, we can return to normalcy. On the other hand, the state payroll bill ensures that recruitment will not be done in an unscrupulous way, as was done in the past. "There will be a control of the state salary regarding the recruitment of new employees in the future that will be done strictly based on the needs and not any other criteria".
Asked about the scales for new entrants to the Public Service, Mr. Petridis said that "scales for new entrants under the previous regulation are reduced by 10%."
Asked about the abolition of the special levy, he said that "for this year I do not think this is possible, but the intention of the Government continues to be that by securing public finances, part of which is made by voting for the proposed of the bill in the Parliament on the state payroll, to abolish the extraordinary contribution which also concerns the private sector. This continues to be the case. Unless something happens that will upset the current fiscal data. That is why we want to be very careful on all fronts, because it will be an important injection in the incomes of all citizens that will also have a developmental tone ".
He added that the time horizon at the moment for the abolition of the contribution is the end of 2016. "I do not know if it will be possible before but the intention is the end of 2016 to remove this contribution, this distortion," he said.
Asked about the revenue for the state from this contribution, he said that "we have estimated that it is about 70 million (annually). "You realize how important these 70 million are for the public coffers with the needs of the state."
Asked to say whether the return to recruitment, increases and promotions will be from 1/1/2017, Mr. Petridis said that "the implementation of the new system will be from 1/1/2017. At the same time, there will be a better system, based on the management of the medium-term financial framework, through which an overview will be made of what the real needs are per Ministry. There will be a greater responsibility of the Ministries for their own needs through the arrangements for their own budgets and it is a more rational system. That way, these uncontrolled recruitments that took place in the past will not take place. "
Asked if the increases will be proportional to the GDP growth rate, he said that "now the increases of civil servants should be in line with GDP growth, ie the growth rate, as is done in the private sector."
Asked about the issue of recruitment and promotions, Mr. Petridis said that "based on the bills, there will be an increased reason for the recruitment of employees by the Ministries themselves. It is something that is clarified in the bills. It is a more modern practice that is followed in all European countries ".
Asked to say if the role of EDY becomes more supervisory, Mr. Petridis stated that "the role of EDY is not reduced, but upgraded. It becomes a real supervisory body. One bill also provides for increased responsibility for the supervision of the evaluation system, for the implementation of the examination system, possibly in cooperation with other bodies, such as the University, and the supervision of this process, and at the same time interviews will be conducted by EDY in a completely different way, and there will be no interviews on the low scales, for which there is objectively no reason. "In the past, this may have been part of the client state."
Asked about the scoring, he said that "the scoring will be based on exams, evaluation system, academic and professional qualifications, previous experience, interview at EDY, recommendation of a supervisor".
Asked to say whether there is provision in the bills for the welfare fund of those hired after 2011, Mr. Petridis said "in the bills no. However, there is an intention for the new welfare plan to be finalized in the coming months. This is something that the Ministry of Finance is studying thoroughly and I believe that in the coming months the new provident fund for new employees who were hired after 2011 will be finalized and will also apply to new entrants who will be hired after 2017 or from now on. ».
In a journalist's remark that there will be employees of two speeds in this matter, Mr. Petridis answered in the affirmative and added that "the difference in speeds is not big. In many Public Services where reforms are made, to some extent two speeds are created. There is a transitional period and in that transitional period there are two speeds ", while answering another question he said that not many people have been hired since 2011.
Asked if the new regulations in the Public Service, such as promotions, will affect all sections of the public sector, Mr. Petridis said that "they are defined in the bill for whom they will apply. They will not apply everywhere. "There are some specialized groups, for example a different system should be applied to teachers."