Before 1941, state employment operated under what is commonly known as a "spoils
system." Under the spoils system, state employees in the executive branch
were hired and fired based largely on their political affiliations. When a new
governor was elected, many state employees (who had been hired by the previous
administration) were fired and replaced by new employees loyal to the new governor.
Also, state employees were expected to contribute a portion of their paycheck
and time to support the governor's political party.
To address these problems, the legislature first created a statutory civil service system. However, the legislature quickly created so many exceptions that the spoils system continued to operate.
When the legislative civil service system failed, Michigan citizens voted in 1941 to amend the state Constitution to finally end the spoils system. That amendment created the Civil Service Commission and the civil service system for classified state employees in the executive branch.
The Michigan Constitution gives the following responsibilities to the Civil Service Commission:
| 1. | Classify all positions in the classified service. |
| 2. | Fix pay rates for all classes of positions. |
| 3. | Approve or disapprove disbursements for all personal services. |
| 4. | Determine the qualifications of all candidates by competitive examination and performance, exclusively on the basis of merit, efficiency, and fitness. (The Constitution expressly forbids any appointments, promotions, demotions, or removals for racial, religious, or partisan reasons.) |
| 5. | Make rules and regulations covering all personnel transactions. |
| 6. | Regulate all conditions of employment in the classified service. |
Although the Civil Service Commission is responsible for regulating all conditions of employment in the classified service, it works cooperatively with the Governor, the Office of the State Employer, and the individual departments to help make Michigan a great place to work. In addition, the Civil Service Commission authorized collective bargaining for most classified employees in 1980, and employees have since had an organized voice in their pay and conditions of employment.
The world and state have changed considerably since the Civil Service Commission was created in 1941, yet the Commission continues its primary constitutional charge to ensure that state employment is based solely on merit, efficiency, and fitness.
Meetings of the Civil Service
Commission are open to the public. The Commission's schedule is posted on the
Department of Civil Service website at http://www.michigan.gov/mdcs.