Question & AnswerQ&A (PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 807)
The official title is the Civil Service Decree of the Philippines.
The policy is to ensure that appointments in the Civil Service shall be made only according to merit and fitness, establish a progressive personnel administration system, and promote morale, responsibility, integrity, loyalty, efficiency, and professionalism.
Agency means any bureau, office, commission, administration, board, committee, institute, corporation, whether performing governmental or proprietary function, or any other unit of the National Government, as well as provincial, city, or municipal governments, except as otherwise provided.
Career Service includes open career positions requiring prior qualification by exam, closed career positions that are scientific or highly technical (like faculty of state universities), career executive service positions appointed by the President, career officers appointed by the President such as Foreign Service Officers, commissioned officers and enlisted men of the Armed Forces, personnel of government-owned or controlled corporations not under the non-career service, and permanent laborers.
Non-career service includes elective officials and their personal or confidential staff, department heads and officials of Cabinet rank at the pleasure of the President and their personal or confidential staff, appointed commission and board members with fixed terms and their staff, contractual personnel for special work not exceeding one year, and emergency and seasonal personnel.
The Civil Service Commission is composed of a Chairman and two Commissioners, all appointed by the President for seven-year terms without reappointment, with staggered initial terms of 7, 5, and 3 years.
The Commission administers the Civil Service merit system, prescribes and enforces rules, promulgates policies and standards, advises the President on personnel matters, appoints its personnel, supervises civil service examinations, approves appointments (except presidential appointees and certain others), audits personnel programs, hears and decides administrative disciplinary cases, issues subpoenas, and submits annual reports to the President.
A natural-born Filipino citizen, at least 35 years old at appointment time, holder of a college degree, and must not have been a candidate for any elective position in the immediately preceding election.
Grounds include dishonesty, oppression, neglect of duty, misconduct, immoral conduct, discourtesy, inefficiency, receiving gifts for favors, conviction of crimes involving moral turpitude, violation of civil service law or rules, frequent absences or tardiness, habitual drunkenness, gambling, refusal to perform duties, insubordination, political activity, nepotism, and other acts prejudicial to good service.
The disciplining authority may suspend any subordinate pending investigation if the charge involves dishonesty, oppression, grave misconduct, neglect of duty, or there are reasonable grounds the respondent is guilty of removable offenses.
Nepotism is the appointment in government or its branches in favor of relatives within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity of the appointing or recommending authority, chief of bureau, or person exercising immediate supervision, which is generally prohibited.
Violators may be fined up to one thousand pesos, imprisoned up to six months, or both, at the court's discretion.
Each head of department or agency is responsible for personnel administration in accordance with constitutional provisions, the Civil Service Decree, and rules established by the Commission, including organizing Civil Service staff for technical assistance, monitoring, and auditing compliance.
Positions are grouped into three levels: first level (clerical, trades, custodial with less than four years college), second level (professional, technical, scientific with at least four years college), and third level (Career Executive Service positions).
Appointments are made based on merit and fitness, determined as far as practicable by competitive examinations, with promotion from within when possible, and through certification from a register of eligibles.