29 August 2023
Today the Commission’s report Robust Recruitment was tabled in Parliament.
The report is informed by observations of inadequate recruitment practices during the Commission’s work. These deficiencies can not only expose a public authority to corruption, but can reduce the productivity of public administration, undermine staff morale, damage an agency’s reputation, and reduce public confidence in public administration.
Public authorities should have in place clear recruitment policies to support merit-based recruitment. These standards should be known, communicated, and enforced.
Recruitments must be planned, conflicts identified, and applicants appropriately screened.
The Commission frequently observes instances of conflicts of interest impacting recruitment choices. This may present as tailoring job descriptions for preferred candidates, interviewing a single candidate despite other viable options, not conducting interviews, and providing interview questions or coaching to a candidate.
A recent case investigated by the Commission emphasised the significance of addressing conflicts of interest, as overlooking such matters can undermine the integrity of the recruitment process. Even though no wrongdoing was found in the investigation, actively discussing potential conflicts within the panel could have averted the need for any investigation.
Recruitment processes must be supported by thorough and accurate documentation to ensure decisions are transparent and defensible.
Commissioner Vanstone said, ‘Public authorities must have robust policies and processes in place to guard against corruption in recruitment.’
