Making GL17 Attainable For Rivers Civil Servants

The civil service system in Rivers State, Nigeria, like in many other regions, has its roots in the colonial period when Nigeria was under British rule. The civil service was established to administer the colonial government’s policies and manage various administrative tasks.During the colonial era, the British established a centralised administrative structure to govern their colonies. This included the establishment of a civil service to manage various aspects of governance, such as revenue collection, law enforcement, public works, and other administrative functions. This system was put in place to serve the interests of the colonial government. After Nigeria gained independence in 1960, the civil service structure remained largely intact. The administrative framework established during the colonial period was inherited by the newly formed Nigerian government, including Rivers State which was created in 1967. Civil servants continued to play a crucial role in implementing government policies and ensuring the effective functioning of various government departments and agencies.
Over the years, the civil service in Rivers State, as well as in Nigeria as a whole, has undergone changes and reforms to adapt to the evolving political, social, and economic landscape. These changes have aimed to improve efficiency, transparency, and professionalism within the civil service.The salary grade levels in the civil service system of Rivers State, Nigeria, are based on the Nigerian federal civil service salary structure, which is often used as a template by various states in Nigeria. Although in Nigeria’s federal system, each state has its laws and issues such as salaries, taxation, real estate is vested in the states, sometimes in collaboration with the Federal Government.The salary structure is divided into different grade levels, each with corresponding salary scales. Grade level one is the lowest grade, which is occupied by … while grade level 16 is occupied by the Directors and level 17 the highest rank, occupied by the Permanent Secretaries, the Auditor General and a few others.
Recall that civil servants have demanded that Grade Level 17 be set as the last for all civil servants in Rivers State in line with the federal civil service and states like Bayelsa and the state judiciary. They have argued that pegging the grade level at 16 or making it a prerogative of a few has far reaching implications both to the workers, the civil service and the state in general. A staff of the Ministry of Education who would not like her name to be mentioned said that limiting the grade level of civil servants in the state to 16 discourages career progression and hinders employee motivation to continuously develop their skills and take on higher responsibilities. The level 14 civil servant said that because civil servants in the state feel their career growth is restricted beyond a certain level, some talented and experienced ones are always seeking opportunities elsewhere while some others grab any opportunity to enrich themselves not minding how corrupt that opportunity is.
“Some of us are still here because there is no better job. Rivers State is a rich state and should treat the workers well like Bayelsa State. Bayelsa and some other states pay workers 30 per cent minimum wage. Workers there are promoted to grade level 17 a few years after being on level 16. But here in Rivers State there is nothing like that. Once you reach level 16 na your bus stop be that. That is not good. Our state can do better. It should be statutory that civil servants should be promoted to level 17 highest five years after being on level 16, if they still have more time in service”, she said . She enumerated other disadvantages of pegging grade level at 16 to include: It could lead to a lack of experienced personnel in critical positions; it makes it challenging to attract skilled professionals from outside the civil service who are accustomed to higher positions; employees who have worked diligently and gained significant experience might expect recognition in the form of higher grade levels and it is not fair to deny them such privilege.
She further observed that raising the last grade level in the state civil service from 16 to 17 can attract more experienced and skilled professionals to join the civil service as well as motivate existing employees to stay and continue their careers within the civil service, knowing that there are opportunities for further advancement.Some people also posit that the possibility of reaching a higher grade level can motivate civil servants to perform better, take on more responsibilities, and continually develop their skills. This can lead to increased efficiency and productivity within the civil service. In the views of Mrs. Ebele Chikeluba, a retired director with the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, raising the civil servants grade level to 17 can reduce attrition. According to her, employees who feel that their career growth is limited may seek opportunities outside the civil service but when they are sure that they can attain grade level 17, the need to leave the civil service may not be there and that will reduce the risk of losing talented individuals to other sectors or organisations.
She also posited that raising the maximum grade level can provide a structure for accommodating roles that require extensive experience and specialisation and incentivise employees to develop the necessary expertise, adding that as employees progress to higher grade levels, they are likely to take on roles with greater responsibility and decision-making authority which can lead to better decision-making processes and improved service delivery to the public. In her words, “We have seen situations where public resources will be spent on training civil servants and when the government is to benefit from their wealth of knowledge and training, they are not promoted to the right position, instead a person that knows nothing will be appointed as permanent secretary or what have you. This is one of the reasons the civil service in Nigeria is not growing.”
Similarly, an employment expert, Mr. Ezekeil Thomas, said that offering a path to higher grade levels can contribute to a positive organisational culture where employees feel valued, supported, and recognised for their contributions, noting that a higher maximum grade level can be part of a comprehensive succession planning strategy, allowing experienced employees to take on leadership and mentoring roles, thus ensuring a smooth transition of responsibilities over time.He said that retaining and promoting experienced employees can bring valuable institutional knowledge and insights to the organisation and the civil service union can benefit immensely from efficient use of existing resources. However, for the Chairman of the Rivers State Civil Service, Comrade Chukwuka Osima, the question of attaining level 17 in the Rivers State Civil service has largely to do with a worker’s years of service and age.
According to him, “the statutory position of level 17 has been there. The government has not stopped any civil servant from attaining the statutory level of 17. But sometimes if you are a director on level 16 and you retire either by years of service or age, you cannot get to that level of 17. But if you get to level 16 and you have years ahead, you will get to statutory level 17. The chairman rather pleaded with the government for the extension of the retirement age to 65 or 40 years of service; prompt payment of retirement benefits – pension and gratuity, disclosing that many pensioners were lost in the state because they were not paid their pensions and gratuity for them to take care of themselves. He was optimistic that the state governor, Siminalayi Fubara, being a civil servant, will prioritize the welfare of civil servants in the scheme of things.
There have been several stories and reports about civil servants in some ministries and parastatals who have been in the director position for up to ten years or more. Did they choose to remain there? Did they opt to be on level 16 for such length of time even when obviously age and years of service were on their sides?

By: Calista Ezeaku