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NCA staff set for alcohol, drug checks in performance push

Drunk man

 Employees of the National Construction Authority are set for alcohol and drug abuse checks as part of an initiative aimed at improving service delivery.

Photo credit: Pool

Employees of the National Construction Authority (NCA) are set for alcohol and drug abuse checks as part of an initiative aimed at improving service delivery.

The NCA said the checks through a survey would be conducted in line with performance contracts that require efficiency and effectiveness at the workplace.

"One of the indicators of performance is the prevention of alcohol and drug abuse. The prevention of alcohol and drug abuse survey aims at reducing the impact of drugs and substance abuse at the workplace by designing evidence-based strategies for addressing the challenges of alcohol and drug abuse at the workplace for the purpose of supporting employees and their families," said the State agency.

The survey will target all members of staff at the agency.

"The main objective of the survey is to document the problem of alcohol and drug abuse among employees of the National Construction Authority," said the agency as it invited consultants to conduct the survey.

Alcohol and drug checks have become popular in workplaces worldwide as employers sought to boost productivity by lowering the chances of accidents at work and interferes with how much work is done.

This comes as the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) said public servants are set to earn bonuses whenever they hit targets as the government moves to boost productivity in the civil service.

The SRC revealed that it has established a new framework to recognise productivity and performance in public service.

It is expected to set the procedure for the linking of financial rewards to measurable productivity and performance.

Public institutions will be required to achieve at least 101 per cent of the annual performance ratings to earn bonuses.

Commercial and revenue-generating State corporations will be obligated to demonstrate cost efficiency and growth in revenue and profit.

Individual employees who achieve at least a 101 per cent performance rating will also qualify for the bonuses, which will be set by the SRC provided the institutions employing the persons beat the target too.

According to the SRC, the bonus shall be prorated based on corporate score and will be anchored on the basic salary of the State and other public officers and the wages of accounting officers in the case of board members. Beyond realised revenue and profitability, other productivity metrics cover quality, cost-effectiveness, and time taken in the delivery of service.

The SRC said the productivity bonuses will mark a turning point in the quest to trim the wage bill by focusing on the expansion of productivity.