Reform of the personnel evaluation system for local government employees is making steady progress, a survey by the Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development reveals

A questionnaire survey on the current status of personnel evaluation systems in municipalities, which the Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development conducted in August, revealed that about 70% of prefectural governments and about 80% of city governments regarded differences in treatment resulting from personnel assessments as being inevitable. The results of the survey were published in November.

The survey targeted 47 prefectures and 280 cities throughout Japan. Their response rates were 46.8% and 40.1%, respectively.

About 40% of prefectural governments and over 30% of city governments apply personnel evaluation systems to all their employees. As for the status of revising such systems, about 80% of the prefectures and about half of the cities surveyed had already implemented revisions or were planning to do so within the next three years.

When asked if they planned to "minimize seniority wages and replace them by merit- and achievement-based wages," 60% of the prefectural governments said that they would apply this system to their employees in managerial posts, and 40%, to their general employees. Meanwhile, 40% of city governments said that they would apply a system of "using both the seniority-based wages and merit- and achievement-based wages in equal proportions" to their employees in managerial posts and 40%, to their general employees.

Concerning the mandatory retirement system, 37.5% of city governments said that it should be continued, while 36.1% could not say if it should neither be continued or discontinued. The latter answer was cited by 72% of prefectural governments. Moreover, 46.8% of city governments and 27.3% of prefectural governments said that an employee´s degree of contribution while in office should be reflected in their retirement allowance.

This survey revealed that the reform of the personnel system that parallels the trends in the private sector is making steady progress among local government employees, most notably among those working in prefectural governments.