Since Gov. Scott Walker signed the civil service bill into law Friday, Wisconsin’s hiring, promotion and compensation policies are set to change.
The law will centralize the current hiring and firing processes of public employees. Barry Burden, University of Wisconsin political science professor, said the law will remove hiring responsibilities from agencies and place them in government control.
The law will pose new challenges for veteran employees who will no longer have bumping rights, Burden said. Formerly, these employees could use bumping rights to keep their positions or move laterally into another position in case their company downsized.
Americans for Prosperity Wisconsin said in a statement that this law will reform the state’s hiring process and allow Wisconsin’s government to provide high quality services for a lower cost. The law will make employees more accountable, the statement said.
“With the signing of this bill, Wisconsin is leaving behind the human resources policies of 1905 and entering the 21st century,” the statement said.
Burden said the government would still have to create a process to review résumés as this would be the primary basis for judging employee credentials. The law will allow people to be hired based on merit instead of seniority.
Assembly minority leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, said in a statement the law will “gut” Wisconsin’s civil services. He added that the law will allow the government to hire who it wants to, regardless of their qualifications. This law will also reduce the government’s transparency, Barca said.
“By dismantling our state’s civil service system, Governor Walker and legislative Republicans are kicking down the door for cronyism and corruption in Wisconsin,” Barca said.
Democrats opposed the bill except for its “Ban the Box” provision. The “Ban the Box” provision will prevent the state from inquiring about a person’s criminal record on job applications. Instead, this inquiry will be deferred to later in the application process.
In a statement from Sen. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, she said she opposes the law as a whole, but supports the “Ban the Box” provision, which she called a “ray of hope.”
“I believe if you work hard and play by the rules, you deserve another chance to make up for your past mistakes,” Taylor said. “I’d rather have someone with a criminal record in the government’s workforce than in the government’s pocket.”
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Burden said this would be a significant change to the state’s civil services and would have a long-term impact.
“These are meaningful changes in how the state operates,” Burden said. “Some of these things are not sexy but they really do affect people’s everyday lives and would be felt down the road.”
