Odisha govt tightens norms for re-engagement of retired employees

The reappointment will have to be approved by the chief minister after recommendation by a four-member committee headed by the chief secretary.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Photo | Express

BHUBANESWAR: Doing away with the indiscriminate post-retirement re-engagement of officers by the previous BJD regime, the BJP government on Thursday issued comprehensive guidelines banning reappointment of retired employees for routine and day-to-day office work.

A resolution in this regard issued by the General Administration department repealed the earlier guidelines issued by the BJD government in 2014 and stated that re-engagement of retired employees will be considered only in rare cases. The reappointment will have to be approved by the chief minister after recommendation by a four-member committee headed by the chief secretary.

The guidelines stated retired employees up to 65 years of age and those who are fit will be considered for re-engagement. If the past experience of retired employees is highly required, only then his or her case will be considered for re-engagement on contractual basis.

Employees having outstanding CCR/PAR for continuous 60 months before superannuation will be considered for re-engagement on temporary basis after retirement. Employees against whom departmental proceedings had been initiated or had been punished for misconduct within five years before retirement will not be considered.

The guidelines said initially the re-engagement will be for one year. The tenure can be extended for one year each thrice if the performance of the employees is found satisfactory. Besides, there will be extension of tenure only if the vacant post has not been filled by regular recruitment process. Reappointed employees can be dismissed with one month notice or can resign by giving notice of the same duration.

It is stated that during 2010-2014, government establishments had been facing acute shortage of manpower on account of delayed recruitment for various reasons resulting in heavy workload on the existing staff. The government in August, 2014, decided to re-engage retired employees having professional expertise temporarily on contractual basis for different spells with certain terms and conditions.

However, it has now come to the notice that different departments, offices are engaging retired government employees in a routine manner without proper justification. Such re-engagements are being given merely to deal with the day-to-day routine works. They are done despite there being no compelling justification for such engagement, the resolution stated.

“After careful consideration of the above situation and with a view to ensure a uniform principle, the government has decided that if vacancies arise for dealing with routine works, the department or office concerned will take measures to fill up these through direct, promotional recruitment,” the resolution added.