Public Employees - Essay Example

Public Employees Public Employees: Patronage versus Merit System Pendleton Act (1883) Most of the workers in the federal bureaucracy are known as the civil service or public employees. These employees are theoretically are hired in their positions based on their qualifications and remain in employment beyond the term of a specific era. Public employees are thus supposed to be protected from partisan politics that is omnipresent. However, public employees have not always been protected from partisan politics as they are in the modern times.

It is therefore important to analyze how the employment systems have changed over the years and their benefits (Dautrich and Yalof, 2013). This essay discusses the benefits of the patronage system versus the merit system for public employee.First, the patronage system refers to a system where public employees are hired or dismissed based on the support of an individual candidate or the political system. When a candidate belonging to a certain political party wins an election, they have the right to appoint a given number of individuals into public positions (Farazmand, 2007).

This is the real meaning of the patronage system that is commonly referred to as the spoils system. The appointment of these individuals is based on political support rather than merit as the appointment criteria. Although the patronage system exists across the various levels in the US government, the number of positions offered through this system has reduced drastically since the 1880s. In fact, the system existed in the US until 1883 with the enactment of the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883.

In 1820, congress set a limit of the federal administrators to four years and this lead to an increase in the public employees’ turnover (Dautrich and Yalof, 2013). By the 1860s, the patronage system and the civil war had led to increased corruption and widespread inefficiency in the public service and had spread to low rank government positions.There are numerous benefits associated with the patronage or spoilers system. To start with, the system helps put in place a well-organized political system that rewards campaign workers.

The system also puts individuals who agree with the political agenda in power thus promotion cooperation, trust and loyalty within the public service. The system ensures continuous turnover and this brings new individuals and ideas into the system. This system was replaced by the Merit system when the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 was enacted (Dautrich and Yalof, 2013). The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 specified that public jobs were to be awarded based purely on merit not on political affiliations, favoritism or nepotism (Dautrich and Yalof, 2013).

The act led to the enactment of the civil service commission that conducted all the hiring and firing operations within public offices. It also cushioned employees against losing their jobs every time there was a change in political power. The act covered ten percent of the jobs when it was enacted but now covers more than ninety percent of the public jobs. There are numerous benefits associated with the merit system for public employees. The system leads to fairness in the hiring process therefore only deserving employees get the positions.

Secondly, employees are protected against unfair reprisal or sacking (Burbank and Cooper, 2010). Thirdly, employees are offered fair payment packages and incentives. In summary, employees get fair treatment in personnel management regardless of their political affiliations, race, color, marital status or origin.ReferencesBurbank, J., & Cooper, F. (2010). Empires in world history: Power and the politics of difference. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Dautrich, K., & Yalof, D. (2013). The enduring democracy.

Cengage Learning. Farazmand, A. (2007). Strategic public personnel administration: Building and managing human capital for the 21st century. Greenwood Publishing Group.