Monrovia The Civil Service Agency of Liberia has released what stands out to be an infamous report captured on employees of the Judicial Branch of government within Montserrado County.
On the outcomes of the report, several staffers now risk stern disciplinary action ranging from salary deduction, suspension and dismissal as a result of high levels of absenteeism.
The report comes on the heels of a seven-day Personnel and Credential Verification Exercise conducted by the CSA at the formal request of His Honor Yamie Quiqui Gbeisay Sr., Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
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According to the CSA, the credential verification exercise is consistent with the Government of Liberia's public sector reform strategy and the need for improved personnel management within government spending entities.
Particularly so, the Judiciary's verification exercise was conducted in the framework of the CSA's broader responsibility of being the central government's agency responsible for personnel management. It is responsible for enhancing the capacity of human resources, improving service delivery, and thereby increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the Civil Service. This entails planning human capacity needs, selection and recruitment, training and development, performance and grievance management, and career development of civil servants.
The exercise was designed to establish accurate and updated employee records, conduct a comprehensive headcount and attendance verification, authenticate academic and professional credentials, optimize staff deployment based on qualifications and institutional needs, formalize employment status updates through Personnel Action Notices (PANs) and promote transparency, integrity, and accountability in the Judiciary's workforce management.
Consequently, findings by the CSA revealed that 38.3% of the workforce within the judicial branch in Montserrado had attendance-related penalties, reflecting systemic challenges in enforcing discipline.
Attendance analysis revealed high levels of absenteeism, with staff could face salary deductions for five days or less for absenteeism.
It also reveals that another 22 staff could face suspension for 13 days or less for absenteeism, while 63 staff with prolonged and repeated absenteeism could face dismissal.
"Of the 674 verified staff, 426 (63%) had authentic and verifiable academic credentials. Fifty-six (56) cases (8%) of unverifiable or questionable documents were flagged for further investigation. These documents were set aside and sent to the relevant academic and professional institutions for third-party authentication. They are all appended," the findings reveal.
Furthermore, the report divulges that 92 staff have no academic qualifications, while 243 hold only high school diplomas.
The credential verification process also uncovers several challenges faced by the judiciary including poor recordkeeping and absence of standardized personnel files, resistance and intimidation from some staff during the verification process and weak attendance monitoring and a lack of automated systems.
Predicated on these discoveries and challenges, CSA made several key recommendations to the head of the Judicial Branch.
As part of its recommendations, CSA stressed the critical need for payroll consolidation by transitioning all staff to the CSA-managed unified payroll system to ensure compliance with the law and eliminate irregularities.
CSA also recommended the need for credential Integrity by suspending staff with severe credential discrepancies pending third party investigation and permanently removing them from the payroll if documents are fraudulent.
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Most importantly, the judiciary is also being urged to carry on reclassification by moving on to redeploy/reclassify the 243 staff with high school diplomas and 92 unqualified staff to positions aligned with their educational levels.
"The verification exercise has provided the Judiciary with a comprehensive baseline of its workforce profile, highlighted systemic gaps, and offered clear corrective actions. Effective implementation of the recommendations will restore transparency and accountability in personnel and payroll management, ensure merit-based deployment and career progression and enhance service delivery and public trust in the Judiciary."
"The Civil Service Agency stands ready to work in partnership with the Supreme Court leadership to institutionalize these reforms for long-term efficiency, professionalism, and sustainability."
