CWA 1180 - Civil Service

Civil Service

Civil service designates the body of people employed in the civil administration of governments. It excludes elected officials, as well as the military, and encompasses the vast bulk of those who see to the daily functioning of the public sector, from the municipal level to the national level. In modern times, the term civil service has come to mean not just the strata of officials who administer government but a set of standards by which they are selected: it reflects the idea that government functions best when it is staffed based on merit and not political patronage. Most civil servants throughout the world today are chosen based on examinations.


	In New York City, civil service law is administered by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS). Visit their website by clicking here.

A brief history of civil service

New York Civil Service Law

Civil service and 1180 members

A brief history of civil service

The first use of examinations to select civil officials was in China during the Han dynasty (206 B.C.E. - 220 C.E.). In the west, the selection of civil administrators based on merit did not begin until the rise of national states replaced the feudal order. In the mid-17th century, Prussia instituted a civil service on a competitive basis. Similar reforms followed in France, where they became the basis for the Napoleonic reforms at the beginning of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, competitive civil service rules came even later.

In the United States, the first Civil Service Commission was established by Congress in 1871, but it only lasted a few years. The first civil service reform association was formed in New York City in 1877, and in 1883 New York City and Brooklyn became the first cities in the nation to adopt civil service regulations. The national civil service movement was inspired by the New York examples, and the 1883 Pendleton Act reestablished a federal Civil Service Commission, and this one lasted.

New York Civil Service Law

In New York State, the merit system of civil service is enshrined in the state constitution. Article V, section 6 of the constitution states:

Appointments and promotions in the civil service of the State and all of the civil divisions thereof, including cities and villages, shall be made according to merit and fitness to be ascertained, as far as practicable, by examination which, as far as practicable, shall be competitive.

The state's Civil Service Law implements this mandate of the state constitution. It applies to state as well as municipal employment. Municipalities each have their own rules to implement the state Civil Service Law. In New York City, those rules are set by the New York City Civil Service Commission, and administered by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS).

Civil service and 1180 members

The bulk of Local 1180 members work in civil service titles subject to examinations in New York City. The union represents both workers who are "permanent," i.e., who have passed the civil service test for the title they are serving in, and workers who are "provisional," i.e., who have not passed the civil service test for the title they are serving in and were appointed provisionally to their job.

When a civil service exam is given, a list is established afterwards from which city agencies hire. The list consists of all those who passed the test, ranked by their scores. New York State Civil Service Law requires agencies to utilize the list when they are hiring for that title, and requires them to consider the top three scorers remaining on this list; this is known as the "one-in-three rule." Once a list is established, it remains in effect for one year, and can be extended for up to three additional years.

Provisional employees have no tenure rights. They may be initially appointed to their jobs if there is no list in effect at the time, but when a list is established following a test, agencies are required to hire from the list, and provisionals may lose their jobs as permanent civil servants are hired off the list.

There are two types of exams: "promotional exams" are open to those who hold a permanent civil service title in the same promotional line (e.g., someone who has a Clerical Associate title would be eligible to take the Principal Administrative Associate promotional exam); while "open competitive exams" are open to anyone regardless of civil service title (there are still educational and other requirements). Local 1180 urges eligible provisional members to take a promotional exam for the title in which they are serving as soon as possible. We urge those without any civil service title to take an open competitive exam for the civil service title in direct line for promotion into their 1180 title.

Civil service law is administered by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS). Information on civil service exams, exam applications and deadlines are all available on their website.

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