Course Description
Procedures and problems of governmental personnel administration. Included in the topics are classification, performance appraisal, hiring practices, affirmative action, and pay equity. Studies of governmental agencies are employed to give the students first-hand knowledge of governmental personnel administration.
Athena Title
PUBLIC PERSON ADMIN
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in POLS 6920
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall and spring
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
This course focuses on selected topics in the study and practice of public personnel administration. Essentially, it is an in-depth analysis of the literature, problems, and directions of public personnel issues. The emphasis is on reading, analyzing the literature, and probing the scope and problems of the field. Students should develop an appreciation for the dynamic political environment and the statutory and Constitutional restrictions that distinguish public personnel management from its counterpart in the private sector. Fundamental questions and techniques will be stressed. A variety of class exercises and case analyses will supplement the assigned reading. The course operates from the point of view that personnel administration is one of the most critical concerns in public management. Completion of the course will provide a foundation that will allow students to deal successfully with personnel concepts in other classes, and, ultimately, in their careers. The course format requires that students think rigorously about a number of practical issues facing contemporary public administrators.
Topical Outline
I. Historical Foundations of the Public Service II. Civil Service Reform and the Concept of Merit III. Executive Leadership and Recent Reform IV. Administration and Human Resources Planning V. Job Analysis and Job Evaluation VI. Job Pricing and Employee Compensation VII. Recruitment, Examination, and Selection VIII. Achieving Equal Employee Opportunity IX. The Debate on Affirmative Action X. Employee Motivation and the Personnel Function XI. Performance Appraisal and Management XII. Public Employee Unions and Collective Bargaining XIII. Employee Rights and Responsibilities XIV. Public Sector Human Resource Management and the Future
Syllabus