Memorandum
To The Consultant
Salary Review Exercise
C/O Secretary,
Finance and Administration Department
Mauritius Revenue Authority
8th Floor, Ehram Court
23th Day of September 2011
Table Of Contents
Introduction.......................................................................................................................1
Mission and New Challenges............................................................................................2
Function of Customs Department....................................................................................3
Versatility of skills and Know-how..................................................................................4
Technology..........................................................................................................................8
Raison d'etre of improved salary scales to Customs Officers.......................................10
Factors having direct impact on salary of Customs Officers........................................11
- Internal Recruitment Policy
- Performance Management Review [PMR]
- Remuneration
- Transport Allowances
- Passage Benefits
- Responsibility/ Acting Allowances
- Meal Allowances
- Duty Free Car Allowances
- Overtime and Staggered Hours Supplement
- Customs Officers I [Support II]/ Customs Officers II
- Risk Allowances
- Driving allowances
- Pensions
- Decrease in scope of promotions- introduction of pay running band
Recommendations...........................................................................................................16
Conclusions......................................................................................................................21
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Introduction
The Customs Department is unique in itself, given that its responsibilities and missions are manifold, without losing sight that it is a major revenue earning department collecting to more than 50% of all Government's revenue through different instrument; the levying of import Customs Duties, Import Excise Duty, Excise Duty and VAT at importation.
With the growing pace of globalisation and liberalisation of trade and commerce spearheaded by the World Trade Organisation [WTO], the World Customs Organisation [WCO] and other international institutions, the functions and activities of the Customs Department are expanding continuously to the extent that added pressure and new responsibilities are being conferred to officers. As such the nature of work at all levels of the hierarchy are undergoing profound changes most particularly with the ongoing process of modernisation.
Trade facilitation, in conformity with the recommendations of the WTO represents new challenge in work techniques and methods on the part of officers of the Customs Department. For instance, the automation of clearance of goods without undue delay in a paperless environment involves risk management, which makes it possible to reconcile the facilitator role with that of the regulator of customs laws and related regulations. On the other hand, the Customs Department has to exercise vigilance at all times in the wake of great complexities arising out in the determination of origin of goods from the countries of importation and has also to show expertise in terms of the application of regulations relating to Tariff description, Origin and Valuation [commonly known as the Customs Trilogy.]
It is to be underlined that the Customs Department is in daily contact with traders and enforce not only financial and trade related regulations but many other laws, restrictions and prohibitions on behalf of other Government Departments or Ministries.
Missions and New Challenges
To highlight the four main components broad based missions of the Customs Department, namely: FISCAL, ECONOMIC, PROTECTIVE/REGULATORY and TRADE FACILITATOR TO THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, the following are to be spelt out:
· Implementation of bilateral, regional and multilateral trade preferential agreements;
· Facilitation of movement of goods and persons to achieve international competitiveness;
· Compilation of international trade and statistics;
▪ Protection of the environment and society against illicit movement of restricted and prohibited
goods and
· Prevention of commercial fraud, smuggling and drug trafficking (protection of public health)
· Protection of Intellectual Property Rights
With the development of trade and economic groupings at regional and international levels, workload at the Customs Department have increased more than substantially to the extent that Customs Officers at all levels of the hierarchy have to keep themselves abreast of the new trends in international trade and particularly international conventions that are applied by Customs namely:
· The Harmonised Commodity Description and Coding System Convention
· The Nairobi Convention
· The Washington Convention
· The Montreal Protocol and Agreements relating to International and Regional Trade such as:
1)The WTO Convention – its Valuation, Non Preferential Origin and TRIPS Agreements
2) The EU-ACP Partnership Agreement (COTONU Convention 2000)
3) The COMESA Treaty
4) The IOC Agreement
5) The SADC Trade Protocol
The Complexity of these instruments necessitates evidently for coordinated action with other Ministries (Foreign Affairs, Commerce and Industry, Economic Planning, etc...). As such, the work of Customs Officers is now geared towards more professionalism as Customs has to interface with the outside world and many of the changes that are occurring impact directly on the daily work of the staff. It is also important to highlight that the Customs Department is fully compliant with the recommendations of the Kyoto Conventions.
Functions of the Customs Department
Main Activities
1) Examination and control over import and export documents for the proper assessment and collection of duties and taxes and the physical examination of goods.
2) Examination of Passengers luggage and control of aircraft stores and Duty Free Shops.
3) Surveillance of movements & vessels in the port and its vicinity.
4) Control over factories producing excisable goods for the purpose of collecting excise duty.
5) Investigation and fight against cases of evasion and commercial frauds, namely under valuation, under declaration of goods, smuggling, commercial fraud and other forms of duty evasion as well as fight against drug trafficking.
6) Combating money laundering.
In exercising these functions, the Customs Department enforces a certain number of statutory enactments which are underlined as follows:
· The Customs Act & Customs Regulations
· The Customs Tariff Act & Regulations
· The Excise Act & Regulations
· The Value Added Tax Act
· The Dangerous Drug Act
· The Ports Act
· The Freeport Act
· The Industrial Expansion Activities
· The Supplies Control Act
· The Pharmacy Ordinance
· The Plants Act
· The Scrap Metal Regulations
· Fiamla Act 2002
· Anti-Dumping Act
· Use of Computer Regulations August 2010
· Consumer Protection Regulation 2010
and certain articles of-
· The Code Civil
· The Code Penal
· The Code of Commerce
Versatility of skills and know-how
In accordance with the regular rotation of staff effected, Customs Officers have to work in various sections of the Department during their career and are confronted regularly with new situations and as such they have to keep themselves abreast of all laws, regulations, departmental orders and departmental instructions.
The number of sections referred to hereunder speak for themselves:
Seaport Operations
· Reception Desk
· Compliance
· Examining
· Scanning
· Personal Effects & Returning Residents
· Manifest
· Jerquing
· Transit/Transhipment
· Port Operations
· Parcel Post Office
Surveillance & Enforcement
· Port Surveillance & Enforcement Unit
· Airport Surveillance & Enforcement Unit
· K9 Unit
· Investigation
· Anti Money Laundering Unit
· Commercial Fraud
· IPR
Deferral Regimes
· Bond
· Duty Free Shop
· Exemption Monitoring Unit
· Export/Drawback
· Freeport
· Bank Guarantee
· Refund
Trade Facilitation & Customs Coorperation
· International Matters & HQ Operations
· Documentation Centre
· Customs Offence Report
· Debt Recovery Unit
· Registration
Assessment Section
· PCA
· PCRD
· Tariff
· Valuation
· Valuation Database
· EUR1 /Origin
Excise Section
· Excise
· Auction Sales
· Bonded Tanks
Risk Management Section
IT Section
Capacity Building Team
PATS Autonomous Section
SSR Arrival Hall
In addition to the above, Customs Officers are also posted at Port Mathurin and Plaine Corail Airport.
Customs Officers have also an important technical role to play in the conclusion and implementation of trade protocols in the regional groupings, namely SADC, COMESA and the IOC. They have to attend on a regular basis technical meetings of these organisations at national and international level.
At the PCA (Post Control Audit) and PCRD(Post Control Review Declarations), Customs Officers have to perform duties of a technical nature and which requires essential knowledge and abilities in accounting and auditing.
Customs Officers posted at the different units such as the Port and Airport Surveillance Unit, Bond Monitoring Unit, Exemption Monitoring Unit and Investigation Unit have to possess skills in intelligence work, surveillance, investigation etc.
Technology
In its last report (December 2008), the PRB recognized the development of modern customs practices with the introduction of a new system; the Customs Management System (CMS) using EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) technology. The PRB also made mention in its report at Paragraph 16.18.31 that:
“Work at the Customs Department is undergoing changes. At this stage it is not possible to gauge the extent to which these changes will affect duties and responsibilities at different levels in the organization.”
It is to be emphasized that, since the advent of the EDI technology in 1998, the CMS has made much headway and Customs Officers at all levels have provided a high quality service to the trading community. This technology has at the same time provided Customs with a modern tool in the Management of its control and clearance operations. The EDI technology is very much sought in many countries to the extent that the Mauritian experience in this field is being exported to other countries like Botswana, Ghana and Cameroon and in this connection, it is to be stressed out that Ghana is introducing the EDI with the expertise and the know how of Mauritian Customs Officers. The services of Mauritian Customs Officers in this field based on a contract is bringing additional revenue to our country.
With the operation of the CMS, the Customs Department is acting as the Primary Information Provider (we emphasize here that the Department is providing information in the required format and not data) to various Ministries and Departments namely: The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, The Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the VAT Department, the Income Tax Department. The information provided by the Customs Department is relevant and reliable and contribute to a great extent in the facilitation of the preparation of Budgets and Estimates for the Government and also in the field of bilateral relations in relation to trade and commerce with other countries.
Through the MNS, Customs is linked to all its stakeholders, namely Shipping Agents, Airlines, Clearing & Forwarding Agents, Customs House Brokers, Declarants, the Mauritius Ports Authority and the Freeport Authority.
All Customs Officers at the Headquarters Mer Rouge, Airport, Mauritius Freeport, Parcel Post Office, Preventive Branch, Plaisance Airport Transit Shed and Freight stations have direct link with CMS via more than 100 terminals. As such, the development of the new information technologies have substantially changed the environment in which Customs Officers have to operate.
Raison d’etre of improved salary scales to Customs Officers
The MRA has a work force of circa 660 Customs Officers who are responsible for collecting approximately 50% of all tax revenues and for enforcing tax laws in Mauritius.
Since 2006, the MRA has successfully met its objectives and optimised revenue collection. The table below gives an indication of revenue collected over the precedent financial years according to Annual Reports published.
Year | Revenue Collected |
2006/07 | Rs 34,2 billion |
2007/08 | Rs 42,1 billion |
2008/09 | Rs 47.2 billion |
The Chairperson and the Director-General have successively acknowledged the contribution, hard work and assistance of all MRA employees in making the MRA a successful body and in improving revenue collection over the years. Furthermore section VII subsection 1015 of the HR Manual stipulates that 'the pay scales (...) recognise that some staff perform well in their current grade, and add value to the MRA, and may therefore be paid more than staff who are newly appointed to the next senior most grade’. It is therefore clear that the MRA, as a corporate social player, has to value and reward accordingly its most valuable asset: its employees.
Paragraph 2.2.4 of the Memorandum of Understanding [MOU] signed on 13th June 2005 between the representatives of the Government, the representative of the MRA and the representatives of Trade Unions clearly stipulates that 'Where an officer referred to in paragraph 2.2.2 opts to be transferred, and is transferred to the MRA, he shall be transferred to the permanent and pensionable establishment of the Authority on terms and conditions, including accrued pension rights, WHICH ARE NOT LESS FAVOURABLE THAN THOSE OBTAINED BY HIM BEFORE TRANSFER.'
The Customs Department is also an important player in maintaining social and national peace as Customs Officers act as deterrents to criminal activities, smuggling, drug and human trafficking.
Above all, it should also be emphasized that the Arusha Declaration spelt out in unequivocal terms that in the fight against corruption, Customs Officers must be provided with sufficient salary and conditions to ensure that they were able to maintain a decent standard of living.
However we are of the opinion that many of our rights have been violated since 2006 and that we are currently employed on less favourable terms and conditions as stipulated in the Human Resources Management Manual [HR Manual].
'The HR Manual sets out the policies and procedures which have been adopted by the MRA to manage employment within the MRA'. The manual is therefore considered to contain terms and conditions that regulate employment and conditions of service.
Factors having a direct impact on salary of Customs Officers
1. Internal Recruitment Policy
Section IV subsection 401 of the HR Manual is very clear regarding recruitment policies: 'All vacancies that arise should first be advertised internally in the MRA'. Regarding the most recent recruitment of Trainee Officers, the above subsection was apparently trespassed as the vacancy notice was advertised both internally and externally during the same time period.
This injustice clearly affects Customs Officers whose chances of promotion are greatly reduced as during the written test, there were more than 200 external candidates and only 15 Customs Officers.
Furthermore with the advent of the MRA, promotion based on seniority was canceled out. This has undoubtedly caused Customs Officers to be frustrated as they see no prospect of a career in the MRA, even if they have more than 20 years of service.
Section IV subsection 945 of the HR Manual says ' The MRA will seek to fill most positions by promotion'. However till date no vacancy has been filled by promotions, thereby eliminating any prospect for Customs Officers to climb the hierarchy and ultimately jeopardising a better salary and thus causing frustrations among Customs Officers.
2. Performance Management Review [PMR]
The Performance Management Review is based on Key Performance Indicators [KPI] and these help in determining whether the employee will be awarded an increment or not. The increment will have a career-long effect on the salary of an employee, irrespective of grades.
However it has been noted that during the PMR exercise, many Customs Officers are required by their superiors to sign the KPI form even before their respective Section Heads have commented on their performance. This is a blatant injustice because Customs Officers are forced to sign the KPI form blindly, without even knowing the comments of the Section Heads, which will be instrumental in determining whether the Customs Officers will be awarded increments or not.
3. Remuneration
It is a fact that inflation has been on the rise for the past few years and it has a direct effect on the purchasing power of Customs Officers. Section VII subsection 1017 of the HR Manual offers that 'it is important for the Authority to monitor future cost of living changes once the pay structure has been implemented. Salary levels must be in line with the cost of living at regular intervals'. Officers have suffered a loss of more than 20% over the past 3 years.
4. Transport allowances
Uniform transport grants are currently included in the salary of Customs Officers and it is unfair as transport costs differ from geographical locations. For example a Customs Officer who resides at L’Escalier has to spend approximately Rs100 everyday for transport costs to reach the Customs House at Mer Rouge. On the other hand the officer who lives at Port Louis has nearly no transport costs.
This is clearly shows that the terms and conditions are less favourable now than before the transfer to MRA.
5. Passage Benefits
As things stand today, an amount is included in the monthly salary of Customs Officers, which represent Passage Benefits. However we believe it is impossible to distinguish the passage benefit allowance from the salary, therefore making it impossible for Customs Officers to save. In addition the salary, including all the allowances, are taxable.
6. Responsibility/ Acting Allowances
Section VII subsection 1027 of the HR Manual provides for Responsibility/ Acting allowances for 'all employees who take on additional responsibilities on a temporary basis'. This allowance has a direct impact on salaries of Customs Officers who have to act at a post of higher responsibilities. Unfortunately Customs Officers have to act for posts of higher responsibilities but no Acting allowances are granted mainly because their superiors fail to inform the HR Dept that there is a vacant post and Customs Officer X is shouldering higher responsibilities.
7. Meal Allowances
Section 7 subsection 1031 of the HR Manual refers that officers' required to work overtime beyond 1800 hours' are eligible to a meal provided by the MRA or an allowance of Rs 150. However Customs Officers posted at Airport Arrival Hall and at Preventive Unit receive no such allowance despite working beyond 18h00.
8. Duty Free Car Allowances
The PRB report 2008 stipulates in paragraph 18.2.13 that any officer receiving a salary of Rs 28,000 or more must be entitled to 70% duty free once in career. However only a handful of Customs Officers got Duty Free Car allowances prior to MRA. Despite the fact that many receive a monthly salary of Rs 28,000 or more and moreover we are aligned as parastatal bodies where employees get Duty Free Car allowances at all levels.
This is another example where the terms and conditions are less favourable under the MRA than under civil service.
9. Overtime and Staggered hours Supplement
Sunday is considered a normal working day for Customs Officers posted at Preventive Section and Airport. This measure was introduced to reduce overtime paid to Customs Officers. It has also been noted that many Customs Officers who have previously worked at the Preventive Section have not been paid overtime over the past years. This has resulted in a great impact on the salary of the latter as it is a ‘manque a gagner’.
The shift supplement is currently 25% and it does not reflect the increase in cost of living and decrease in purchasing power.
10. Customs Officers I [Support II] / Customs Officers II
With the advent of the MRA in 2006, ex-Customs and Excise Officers were transferred to the MRA as Customs Officers I [Support II]. Whereas ex-Assistant Revenue Officers, drawing same salary as ex-Customs and Excise Officers, were transferred to the MRA as Officers.
Likewise, ex- Senior Customs and Excise Officers were transferred to the MRA as Customs Officers II whereas ex-Revenue Officers were transferred to the MRA as Technical Officers.
This is a major anomaly that was overlooked by management during the transfer of staff from civil service to the MRA and this injustice has been going on for more than 4 years now, thereby affecting the salary of Customs Officers I and Customs Officers II.
11. Risk allowances
Prior to joining the MRA, ex-Customs and Excise officers were paid a risk allowance. However since the MRA came into operations since 2006, Customs Officers are not paid a Risk Allowance even if the nature of their work is very risky. Customs Officers posted at AMLU, CDU, RMU, Parcel Post Office, Investigation, Port Surveillance, Airport Surveillance, Scanning, PCA , Examining are in regular contact with members of the public by nature of their work. Furthermore Customs Officers posted at K9 Unit have not received any increase in their allowances since 2004.
12.Driving allowances
It has been noted that many Customs Officers drive MRA vehicles at their own risks and they receive no allowances on behalf of MRA.
13.Pensions
Since 2008 salary review till date, no adjustments has been made to retired Customs Officers following salary adjustment for all officers in the MRA. Despite several meetings with management, no solution has been found to this issue yet.
14. Decrease in scope of promotion – introduction of pay running band
The chances of promotion at the MRA is almost nonexistent coupled with the number of posts is constantly being reduced by the Human Resources Dept. Since advent of MRA, some officers stagnate in terms of salary as they have already reached their salary ceiling and they were compelled to file law suits against the MRA.
Recommendations
It is high time to make the HR Manual a statute which can only be amended through joint consultation with Trade Unions. This will be the solution to many problems that affect the remuneration of Customs Officers.
The HR Manual contains sensitive information that impact directly the salary, terms and conditions of service of Customs Officers and it is unacceptable that the former are amended without consulting and/or informing the employees.
SOP manuals are being drafted unilaterally without consultations with staff unions and is always a draft. It has never been a permanent one.
1. Internal Recruitment Policy
It is a fact that the salary of Customs Officers is directly linked to recruitment policies of the organisation. The MRA has to make sure to fill vacancies from existing staff before recruiting outsiders. The recent Trainee Officers recruitment is a blatant injustice [The HR dept of the MRA can provide more information regarding the above vacancy.]
The MRA has to abide to the policies and procedures stipulated in the HR Manual. It must abide to Section IV Subsection 945 which says ‘The MRA will seek to fill most positions by promotion’ and give the opportunity to Customs officers [based on seniority and meritocracy] to climb the ladder and receive better pay.
This is important section of the HR Manual is overlooked and it results in injustice, frustration and neglect.
2.Performance Management Review
It is crucial to respect the procedures outlined for the PMR exercise which is conducted every year. It is unacceptable that officers have to blindly sign the PMR form without even knowing the comments of the Section Head concerned. Because any negative comment from the Section Head in question will undoubtedly put into jeopardy a rise in the salary of the Customs Officer for the rest of his/her career.
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3. Remuneration
We propose an outright rise of 50% in the salary of Customs Officers who collect more than half of total revenue for the state.
Being given that the PRB Report 2008 was more attractive than the salary review conducted by the MRA in 2008, an increase of not less than 50% will be fair and in line with paragraph 2.2.4 of the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the representatives of the government, the representative of the MRA and the representatives of Trade Unions on 13th June 2005.
(Please refer to annexes)
Due to the difference in salaries between civil servants and MRA officers(different grade structures) following the publication of the PRB report 2008 and the MRA salary review 2008, we suggest you apart inflation figures to consider this anomaly when adjusting our salary.
4. Transport Allowances
Transport allowance has to be paid over and above salary offered to Customs Officers and it must be adjusted every time there is a rise in transport costs in Mauritius. It has also been observed that transport cost has been increasing constantly over the past three years. Therefore the MRA has to calculate and pay arrears due to all Customs Officers who have endured rise in their transport budget.
5. Passage Benefits
It is clear that Customs Officers were better-off prior to the MRA when passage benefits were paid separately. We therefore propose an equivalent in monetary terms for an Air Ticket each year representing the cost of one air passage Mauritius- an Asian destination –Mauritius to be paid to every Customs Officer every year.
6. Responsibility/Acting Allowances
The on-going trend of ‘unofficially’ requesting Customs Officers to act for a post of higher responsibility must be done away with because it represents a loss in income for officers. As stipulated in the HR Manual, Customs Officers who are instructed to shoulder posts of higher responsibilities must be paid the Responsibility/ Acting Allowance and after three months he/she must be confirmed in that post.
7. Meal Allowances
We propose that a meal allowance of at least Rs 200 is paid to every Customs Officer who works beyond 18h00, irrespective of his/her posting.
8. Duty Free Allowances
Prior to joining the MRA, all Customs Officers reaching a salary of Rs 29000 or more were offered duty free allowances. We propose that the duty free allowances are re-introduced as per the PRB report 2008 mainly because the terms currently on offer at the MRA are outdated and unfair.
9. Overtime and Staggered Hours Allowances
It is high time to review the rates at which Customs Officers are paid for their services after or before working hours and to pay overtime to Officers who work on Sundays, irrespective of postings. The shift allowances must accordingly be reviewed to 40%.
10. Customs Officers I [Support II] / Customs Officers II
We urge the current Consultant to take into deep consideration the unfortunate fate of Customs Officers. The major anomaly explained above must be addressed at the soonest. We propose that all Customs Officers I are upgraded to Customs Officers II and Customs Officers II to be automatically promoted to Technical Officers as was the case for all ex-assistant revenue officers and ex-revenue officers respectively when they they joined the MRA in 2006.
11. Risk Allowances
Anti Drug and Smuggling Unit [ADSU] officers are paid a monthly risk allowance. We propose a monthly risk allowance of Rs 2000 to be paid to all Customs Officers because of the nature of their work and because of regular rotation of staff.
We propose that the allowance received by Customs Officers posted at K9 should be increased from Rs 5000 to Rs 10000.
12. Driving allowances
Customs Officers are required to drive MRA vehicles in certain sections at their own risks. We propose a Driving allowance of Rs 1000 to be paid to these Customs Officers.
13. Pensions
Adjustment of pensions and benefits to retired Customs Officers must be done following periodic salary reviews.
14. Decrease in scope of promotion – introduction of pay running band
We feel that MRA should introduce the running pay band in the salary structure. For example, a Customs Officer II / Officer having reached his top salary is allowed to continue to receive his annual increments in the Technical Officer scale and so on. This will reduce frustration in the department and would also be in line with the policy of the MRA with regards to performance appraisal system and also pave the way for officers not to stagnate when reaching their top salaries. For example, an officer reaching his top salary may not be willing to perform as his performance appraisal would have no bearing on his salary as he would not be due any increment.
Conclusions
Customs Officers are not better off in terms of remuneration as explained about. In 2006 options forms were sent to us and we had to choose either to join the MRA on the terms and conditions proposed or to retire.
Again in 2008, option forms were sent to Customs Officers regarding the Salary Review of 2008. We had no choice but to accept the proposals of the Director General.
These factors have greatly impeded on our rights and most importantly on our salary since 2006. Every time representations were made by Customs Officers, our employer rejected the proposals mainly because we signed the option forms.
The problem lies within the rigid stand adopted by the Board on issues related to employees’ rights, welfare and remuneration. Customs Officers have no choice but to file lawsuits against the MRA and these cases seem never-ending.
We humbly hope that the above representations are taken into account by the Consultant and re-directed to the Director General for implementation. We also wish to submit that this report should not prevent/limit us from suggesting new proposals in a meeting with the Consultant regarding pay Review. We urge the Consultant to make public all his proposals made to the Director General so that we Customs Officers know which proposals have been accepted and rejected.
Finally we request for a meeting with the Consultant in the shortest delay possible to explain our stand and provide further clarifications.
Respectfully submitted to the Consultant on Salary Review on Friday 23rd day of September 2011.
P.K Shamjhu A.Ramtally S. Rojoa T. Purdasy A.Veerasamy A.Rassool
P.Guness Y.Lotun M.Dhondee Y. Bholah
