The Joint Staff Committee is meeting today following a request by the PASYDY, with the implementation of the public service reform set to top the agenda.
Speaking to Politis, PASYDY secretary general Stratis Matthaiou said that “three years after the implementation of the public service reform, we have now identified issues that require improvement”.
He noted that two years ago, when the union raised the need for adjustments and improvements with President Nikos Christodoulides, they were asked to allow the system time to operate and to revisit the matter if problems emerged.
Matthaiou clarified that there is no question of reverting either to the previous evaluation system or to the old promotion framework. The objective, he stressed, is to improve the existing procedures rather than dismantle them.
PASYDY has prepared a series of detailed proposals, which have been submitted to the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service Commission, to serve as the basis for discussion on the amendments deemed necessary to ensure the successful implementation of the reform and the smooth functioning of the service.
Reform under strain
Addressing the union’s 62nd congress in May 2025, Matthaiou had warned that the way the reform had been implemented was complicating rather than facilitating the resolution of problems, creating additional difficulties and operational disruption.
He also highlighted the unresolved issue of Indefinite-Term Employees, describing it as unacceptable that more than 6,000 colleagues in the public service, many with 10, 15 or even 20 years of service, remain effectively stagnant without prospects for advancement.
Public servant evaluations
On the evaluation of public servants, Matthaiou, speaking on the podcast “Matia Stin Oikonomia”, commented on findings in the Public Service Commission’s report submitted to the President. He described as concerning the trend showing the average performance score rising from 8.75 in 2023 to 9.01 in 2024.
Asked what could be done to address the pattern, he explained that the evaluations examined in the report concern salary scales up to A12, as for scale A13 and above they are used solely for development and improvement purposes.
“We need to examine, even for the lower scales, whether employees who are not candidates for promotion should be assessed exclusively for development and improvement purposes,” he said.
Digital transformation
Matthaiou also underlined that the digitalisation of public services must be intensified in 2026. While acknowledging that positive steps have been taken, he argued that efforts must accelerate in order to modernise procedures, reduce bureaucracy and shorten processing times, thereby improving the level of service provided to citizens.
Through the digital transformation of the public service, he said, productivity and the effective service of citizens will increase.
“There is an urgent need to intensify digitalisation. We are lagging behind in this area and remain at the bottom in Europe. There is no alternative but to step up efforts for the state’s digital transformation,” he added.