Benchmarking was an election gimmick and Enda Kenny is correct to call it into question. The cost of benchmarking over the next ten years, at current prices, could be about €13, 000,000,000. If used productively, these funds would enable us to reduce class sizes, repair leaking roofs, open and fully staff more hospitals, police our streets, reduce traffic congestion, care better for the elderly and lots more.
It is extraordinary that the private sector acquiesced so readily to benchmarking given that at least one month's income tax paid by all private sector workers will, for every year henceforth, be used to fund benchmarking.
Many of the action plans linked to benchmarking merely represent "good management" or "normal progress" and should be done without any reference to benchmarking. They do no relate to labour productivity unless performed by existing staff in addition to their existing tasks. In the private sector, productivity means higher output for the same input or maintained output from reduced input.
As the justifications for benchmarking awards are, inexplicitly, a State secret and economic conditions have, in any event, rendered them obsolete, we cannot afford any more fudge and we must insist that the same definition of productivity be used by the private and public sectors.
Letter published in the Irish Times on 22nd September 2003.
Leave a comment