Longford, Roscommon, Ballina, Dundalk - for the last 10 years there has been a steady trickle of civil servants out of Dublin to different parts of the country. Thanks to the government programme of decentralisation - which is nearing completion - nearly half of the civil service (43 per cent) now operates outside Dublin. Some 3,559 employees have already left, and a further 630 are on the way. It is estimated that the programme will conclude in about two years.
Decentralisation was not designed to offset the frequent cry from the regions that all the important decisions are made in Dublin, says a spokesperson from the Department of Finance which is overseeing the programme, because "it's a fact of life that the major decisions are made by the government, and that's in Dublin". Rather, the main aim was "to foster economic growth in certain parts of the country by bringing more jobs into the area". A secondary, less significant, objective was "to relieve congestion in Dublin".
There was apparently no particular aim when it came to matching the 19 designated locations with government departments, other than the necessity for economic development in particular areas, and choosing locations that could accommodate this kind of development with appropriate sites and other requirements. "There would be difficulties in relocating a major organisation into a small area," says the Department of Finance spokesperson.
Another consideration was whether a department could be split in this fashion without its service to the public being adversely affected. The section of Marine and Natural Resources that is moving to Wexford is Forestry, for example, which used to be a self-contained part of Agriculture.
"The units that have been moved out are the operational type areas, like processing tax returns and paying staff salaries," explains Blair Horan, general secretary of the Civil and Public Service Union (CPSU). "It's all processing work that can be done anywhere. It is not geographically specific - it's more dependent on technology."
Inevitably, certain areas proved more popular than others when it came to attracting applications to move out. Galway, which now accommodates 181 civil servants in the Department of Defence, scored high in 1989 when the move took place. Wexford has also been popular, with 73 from Environment and Local Government, 37 from Revenue, 290 due to go from Agriculture and Food, and another 40 due from Marine and Natural Resources. Wexford was popular, apparently, because it is close to Dublin and housing is relatively inexpensive. "Our grades earn between £9,000 £15,000 per annum. You can't buy a house in Dublin nowadays on that salary," says Blair Horan, who cites five people he knows who have opted to move to Wexford with the Department of Agriculture because "Dublin house prices are too expensive". Some 75 per cent of civil servants affected by decentralisation are in the CPSU. They are at clerical officer and staff officer grade.
The spokesperson for the Department of Finance hasn't heard of any problems relating to property: "No one has mentioned property fears that I know of. For those who plan to return to Dublin in three or five years, there is the option of renting out their house in Dublin and renting one in their new location until they return."
Blair Horan disagrees: "A lot of people who sold their houses and left Dublin in the last five years for a promotion have been caught out by the Dublin property boom. It is now impossible for them to buy a house in Dublin if they want to come back."
On the other hand: "For people who don't plan to return to Dublin, selling their house is like a cash bonus," says Tom Geraghty, assistant general secretary of the Public Service Executive Union (PSEU). Roughly one-third of civil servants who are taking part in the decentralisation programme are members of the PSEU. "If they sell their Dublin house for £150,000 they can buy another, nicer one in the new location for £100,000. They are making a life decision, really."
He notes there will be problems further along the line for those who have applied to move out because they were taking advantage of the promotion incentive: "If you've made a career decision to move out of Dublin, further career progression is curtailed as most of your department will remain in Dublin. It's a short-term gain only." However: "A lot of people settle down and like it. After some initial trepidation, they decide to make their home in the new place."
ACROSS the board, there is a minimum commitment of three years for those involved in the decentralisation programme. In spite of this, some areas have experienced significant levels of staff turnover. The Department of Social Welfare decentralised to Sligo in mid-1989 and by the end of 1993 had experienced a staff turnover in excess of 50 per cent.
Certain areas, particularly in the midlands, have proved hard to sell. "The number of applicants in certain grades for some locations didn't reach the target," says the spokesperson from the Department of Finance. As a result, incentives were offered: "Higher position grades were opened to lower grades and people competed. In that way the positions were filled."
"About half the posts above basic clerical level were filled on promotion," estimates Blair Horan.
In spite of the fact that no removal expenses were paid, the people who have moved out of Dublin to their new homes have been settling satisfactorily: "I haven't had reports of any widespread trauma involved in the move," says the spokesperson from the Department of Finance. "My impression is that people have integrated into their new communities very well." Things have not always been as smooth on the work front, however: "Some of the organisations have had difficulty in adapting to the move. There have been communications problems with the centre. Another issue is that decentralised offices are smaller than the bigger offices they come from, so if things aren't going well, there's a limitation in terms of flexibility."
"There were problems of inadequate training and preparation," adds Blair Horan. "People were coming in from other departments and taking time to get used to new working methods, often without enough support from management." Meanwhile, there were other difficulties back in Dublin: staff who did not wish to relocate had to be redeployed in other departments.
The largest number of civil servants involved in the programme who have moved to a single location from a single government department was the 550 people from Revenue who relocated to Limerick. "Limerick was under-subscribed," says Tom Geraghty. "But then you have to remember, a lot of people went." Revenue moved "in one fell swoop" to Limerick, Nenagh (200), Ennis (134), Dundalk (88) and Wexford (37).
According to the spokesperson for the Department of Finance, there will be a review of the whole decentralisation programme soon "to see how it is working". Because the programme is reaching its final stages (although building work on the new offices in Dundalk and Roscommon has yet to start), the Minister of Finance plans to discuss its efficacy with the government "in the near future".
Meanwhile, says Blair Horan, there has been a big reversal since the late 1970s and early 1980s, when the civil service was full of people who had moved to Dublin from around the country and were so homesick that they immediately put their names down for a transfer back home: "The transfer requests we get now are from Dublin people who have taken jobs in places like Limerick and who want to come back to Dublin. And of course there are fewer jobs for them in Dublin now, because of the decentralisation programme."
