18 December 1981

Report of the International Civil Service Commission

The General Assembly,

Having considered the seventh annual report of the International Civil Service Commission,

Recalling that it established the Commission for the regulation and co-ordination of the conditions of service of the United Nations common system as set forth in article 1 of the statute of the Commission,

Reaffirming the central role of the Commission within the common system in the development of a single unified international civil service through the application of common personnel standards and arrangements,

I

1. Urges all organizations concerned to implement the decisions of the International Civil Service Commission and to act positively on the recommendations of the Commission in accordance with its statute;

2. Urges the executive heads of organizations, after consultation with the Commission, to report to their respective governing bodies such decisions or proposals as would modify the recommendations of the Commission;

3. Supports the efforts of the Commission to promote uniform and co-ordinated action in the common system and calls on the Secretary-General, in his capacity as Chairman of the Administrative Committee on Co-ordination, to ensure that adequate measures are taken to this end;

4. Regrets the decision of the International Labour Organisation to adopt salary scales as recommended by the Commission only for General Service staff recruited after January 1979, but to increase from 1 March 1981 by 3 per cent the net salary scale in force for General Service staff in service in 1978 or earlier;

5. Reaffirms the importance of the application of common salary scales, as recommended by the Commission under article 12.1 of its statute, for all General Service staff at a particular duty station;

II

1. Notes the progress made by the International Civil Service Commission under article 13 of its statute;

2. Notes the Commission's consideration of training as reflected in sections of its report;

III

1. Requests the International Civil Service Commission to give high priority to the completion of the following studies and to report on them to the General Assembly at its thirty-seventh session:

(a) The broad principles for the determination of conditions of service with particular reference to concepts of career, types of appointment, career development and related questions, taking into account the views expressed by delegations in the Fifth Committee, all related studies and the relevant reports of the Joint Inspection Unit;

(b) The improvement of the comparison of total compensation between the comparator civil service and the international civil service, taking into account all relevant elements, including the level of pensions, but excluding expatriate benefits applicable to Professional and higher categories in the comparator civil service;

(c) The fundamental and comprehensive review of the purposes and operation of the post-adjustment system with a view to avoiding distortions in the system and ensuring equity;

(d) The elaboration of a special index for pensioners, in collaboration with the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board, in accordance with General Assembly decision 35/447 of 17 December 1980;

2. Also requests the Commission to undertake or continue studies on the following questions:

(a) General principles and methodology for surveys to determine the conditions of service of the General Service and other locally-recruited categories, including staff serving at field duty stations;

(b) A review of dependency allowances for all categories of staff and a review of the scope and purpose of the education grant;

(c) Development of interagency co-operation in the field of training with a view to the more efficient and economical use of personnel resources in the common system;

(d) A thorough evaluation, in close collaboration with the organizations, of the utility of current and proposed training activities in the United Nations system, with special reference to management and related training;

(e) A general review of staff assessment for the equitable treatment of all categories of staff at all duty stations;

(f) A comprehensive study of the question of supplementary payments to international civil servants and all related matters.