Faced with a rash of retirements as the baby boomer generation ages, the state is preparing to overhaul what it describes as an antiquated civil service system to make it easier to hire and promote.

The state wants to automate the personnel system so managers and supervisors, for instance, can check online for qualified candidates instead of requesting a list from a personnel office.

"Right now, it's all on paper," said Mary Fernandez, chief of administrative services for the State Personnel Board.

Chris Voight, staff director for the California Association of Professional Scientists, agrees that the state's hiring process is sorely in need of an overhaul.

"The system is so cumbersome, it's virtually useless in many places," said Voight, whose association represents scientists in state service.

But streamlining the system to make promotions easier could jack up payroll costs in some cases, he said.

"Some of those changes may cost some money," he said, "and state government is pretty stingy when it comes to money, at least when it comes to scientists."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger initiated the overhaul. In his budget proposal released last month, Schwarzenegger announced the formation of a task force consisting of the State Personnel Board, the Department of Personnel Administration and human resources specialists from other departments to propose a plan.

The 16-person task force is due to submit its plan by the end of February. It then would likely be incorporated in a bill attached to the state budget, which by law is supposed to be approved by the Legislature by June 15.

One of the impetuses for the proposal is an aging state work force. About 35 percent of the state's workers, age 50 or over, are eligible to retire, Fernandez said.

The current system poses unnecessary obstacles to job seekers and employees looking to promote, officials say.

The classification system is too specialized, said Voight, of the state scientists association. Entomologists -- insect experts -- fall into four different classifications, for instance, requiring workers to go through extensive testing to move up.

As it is, there are 256 scientist classifications spread across 36 state departments, Voight said.

Departments must come up with an exam for each of their classifications, at considerable expense. And for workers, it may mean waiting two to three years for an exam to be given.

"Most people wait a very long time for a promotion, even if the job was sitting there and we needed someone for that job," said Debbie Endsley, acting chief deputy director of the Department of Personnel Administration.

No decisions have been made yet, personnel officials say. But one possibility is broader classifications that include a greater number of "steps." Instead of having to go through a cumbersome process to move up to another classification, workers could use a largely automated system to establish that they were qualified to move up a step.

Endsley said it's uncertain that the overhaul would increase overall costs by making it easier to promote. Just because the system would be more streamlined, she said, doesn't mean that people seeking promotions would automatically pass. But it would assure qualified workers that there is a way to advance.

"There is a clear path forward," she said.

By John Hill, The Sacramento Bee

(NOTE: ACSS will be following this issue very closely.)

February 7, 2007