Philippines Civil Service Commission
The Philippines Civil Service Commission was reorganised following the overthrow of former dictatorial president Ferdinand Marcos with a remit to promote the development of ‘competent and credible civil servants’ to ‘ensure high quality public service’.
One strand of its work is to institutionalise ‘workplace harmony and wellness’ in its public service, and in 2000, supported by the British Council, the CSC asked Public World to advise on the international experience of privatisation and public service reform from that standpoint.
In partnership with the University of the Philippines School of Industrial Relations, Public World managing director Brendan Martin undertook a three-week lecture tour of the country, holding meetings with literally thousands of public service employees and others. This helped to build understanding of modern trends in civil service reform and enable unions to participate in discussion about it in a well-informed way.