Acting Appointment, Missing APERs and a Pending Query
A federal agency's promotion board is to consider 14 Assistant Directors (GL 15) for 6 Deputy Director (GL 16) vacancies. One candidate, Mrs A., has acted in GL 16 for 20 months. Her file contains APERs for 2019 and 2020 but none for 2021 and 2022; the 2022 form was returned 'not received' by the registry. A query dated 5 months ago alleges she travelled abroad for 12 days without leave approval; she replied, but the matter is still 'under investigation' and no disciplinary committee has been constituted. The board's secretariat proposes to score candidates using only the 2019 and 2020 APERs and to treat the pending query as a bar. Another candidate, Mr B., has 3 years' acting experience but was once warned for late submission of reports 4 years ago. The board meets in 10 days; the agency says it cannot afford to leave the GL 16 posts vacant.
1. Advise the board on Mrs A.'s eligibility and on the effect of her 20-month acting appointment.
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Mrs A. is eligible to be considered only if she satisfies the scheme of service and the general promotion conditions. An acting appointment is a temporary assignment; it does not automatically promote an officer or create a right to the higher post. Acting experience may be considered as relevant experience and as evidence of performance, but it cannot replace the requirement of a vacancy, satisfactory APERs and clearance of disciplinary matters.
The board should therefore:
- confirm that she has the minimum years on GL 15 and the required qualification for GL 16;
- treat the 20 months' acting period as relevant experience, not as a completed promotion;
- consider whether the acting period exceeded any permitted limit and whether that was authorised;
- avoid awarding her the post merely because she has been acting, since that would convert a temporary arrangement into a promotion outside the board's process.
If she is otherwise eligible and the query is resolved, she may compete. If the query remains unresolved, her promotion should be deferred rather than granted or refused on the merits.
2. How should the board treat the missing 2021 and 2022 APERs and the pending query against Mrs A.?
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Missing APERs: The board should not simply score her on 2019 and 2020 and ignore two years. It should ask the registry and Mrs A. for certified copies or evidence of submission. If the forms were lost through the registry's fault, the board may use other verified records for those years, such as duty reports or the acting performance assessment, but it must minute why it did so. If she failed to submit the forms without good cause, that is a performance-record issue and may weaken her candidacy; it should not be concealed.
Pending query: A query alleging unauthorised foreign travel is a disciplinary matter. The board should not treat the query as a automatic bar before it is determined, but it should also not promote an officer while a serious allegation remains unresolved. The proper course is to defer her promotion until the query is investigated and concluded. The board should record the deferral and the reason, and ensure she is not penalised indefinitely if the agency fails to constitute a committee. A stale or minor query should be resolved quickly, not used as a permanent disqualification.
3. Recommend the procedure the board should follow and the limits on its recommendation to the Commission.
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The board should:
- Confirm the 6 vacancies and the establishment warrant.
- Check each candidate's eligibility, APERs, seniority and disciplinary record.
- Invite candidates to update missing records and give them a chance to respond to adverse entries.
- Score only eligible candidates using a published, consistent matrix.
- Rank candidates and recommend no more than 6, with a reserve list if the rules allow.
- Minute reasons for every inclusion and deferral, especially Mrs A.'s pending query and Mr B.'s 4-year-old warning.
Mr B.'s old warning should not be a permanent bar; it may be considered only if it is relevant and recent enough under the applicable rules. The board cannot promote more than the 6 vacancies, and it cannot promote Mrs A. merely because she acted. Its recommendation is advisory to the Commission, which must satisfy itself that the board had quorum, followed procedure and applied merit. If the board is uncertain about Mrs A., it should defer her and recommend the best eligible candidates, rather than let the agency's urgency override the rules.