INTERNAL COMMISSION DIRECTIVE

At their 242^nd meeting, on 16 June 2005, the Heads of Administration approved Conclusion 240/05 (see Annex) which applies within the Commission from 1 May 2004.

Claude CHENE

Annex

Luxembourg, 20^th June 2005

CONCLUSION 240/05

APPROVED BY THE HEADS OF ADMINISTRATION
AT THEIR 242nd MEETING OF 16 JUNE 2005

Legal framework

The second paragraph of Article 44 of the Staff Regulations lays down that:

“If an official is appointed head of unit, director or director-general in the same grade, and provided that he has performed his new duties satisfactorily during the first nine months, he shall retroactively benefit from advancement by one step in that grade at the time the appointment comes into effect. This advancement shall lead to an increase in his basic monthly salary corresponding to the percentage between the first and the second step in each grade. If the increase is less or if the official at that time is already in the last step of his grade, he shall receive an increase in basic salary ensuring the increase between the first and second step until his next promotion comes into effect.”

Article 46 of the Staff Regulations lays down that:

“[…] officials in grades AD 9 to AD 13 carrying out the duties of head of unit who are appointed to a higher grade in accordance with Article 45 shall be placed in the second step of the new grade. The same arrangement shall apply to any official:

1. who upon promotion is appointed director or director-general, or
    

2. who is director or director-general and to whom the last sentence of the second paragraph of Article 44 applies.”

Article 7(4) of Annex XIII to the Staff Regulations states that:

“An official in grades A*10 to A*16 and AD 10 to 16 respectively who is on 30 April 2004 head of unit, director or director-general, or is subsequently appointed head of unit, director or director-general and has performed his new duties satisfactorily during the first nine months, shall be entitled to an increase in the basic monthly salary corresponding to the percentage between the first and the second step in each grade as set out in the tables in Article 2(1) and Article 8(1) of this Annex.”

The percentage increase in basic salary referred to in the above provisions is always around 4.2%.

Conclusion

Amount of the benefit

The benefit provided for in the second paragraph of Article 44 (for an official appointed head of unit, director or director-general in the same grade), and that provided for in Article 7(4) of Annex XIII to the Staff Regulations (for an official in grades A*10 to A*16 and AD 10 to 16 respectively who was on 30 April 2004 a head of unit, director or director-general, or who was in service on 30 April 2004 and subsequently appointed head of unit, director or director-general, including by promotion) is to be considered at all times, during the period of performance of those duties and irrespective of the step obtained under Article 44 of the Staff Regulations, only as an increase in basic monthly salary corresponding to the percentage between the first and the second step in the grade in which the person concerned is classified, i.e. as an increase corresponding to the above percentage of around 4.2%.

Officials recruited after 30 April 2004

In connection with the application of the second paragraph of Article 44 of the Staff Regulations, an official recruited after 30 April 2004 to carry out the duties of a head of unit, director or director-general shall receive, by reason of the performance of these duties, an increase in his basic salary corresponding to the percentage between the first and the second step in his grade, i.e. an increase corresponding to the above percentage of around 4.2%.

Non-cumulation

The benefit shall not be cumulative, since it is linked to the performance of the duties in question. If, for instance, a head of unit is appointed a director, the benefit may not be granted a second time.

The benefit provided for in the above Article 46 (for a head of unit appointed to a higher grade and for an official promoted to the post of director or director-general) should serve to maintain the benefit received under paragraph 2 of Article 44 or under Article 7(4) of Annex XIII to the Staff Regulations, but may not be cumulated with those benefits.

Official appointed to a higher grade to carry out the duties of head of unit

An official who is appointed to a higher grade in order to carry out the duties of a head of unit shall obtain, by virtue of performing those duties, an increase in his basic salary corresponding to the percentage between the first and the second step in his new grade.

Reversibility

This benefit shall be maintained as long as the person concerned carries out the duties of a head of unit, director or director-general. It shall, therefore, no longer be granted once the person concerned ceases to carry out those duties.

Contributions and allowances

The amounts in question shall be subject to Community tax and to all charges and contributions applicable to the basic salary, and shall have an impact on all allowances that are calculated in full or in part on the basis of basic salary.

Pensions

Where the person concerned is performing the duties of head of unit, director or director-general on termination of service, the benefit shall be taken into account for the purposes of calculating the entitlements arising from Chapter 3 of Title V of the Staff Regulations on pensions and invalidity allowance.

However, where the person concerned is no longer performing the duties of head of unit, director or director-general on retirement, the pension rights corresponding to the years of pensionable service acquired in the performance of those duties from 1 May 2004 shall be calculated on the basis of the basic salary, including the above benefit, received by the person concerned at the end of the period of performing these duties, if this basic salary is higher than that taken into account pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 77 of the Staff Regulations.

Temporary staff

This conclusion shall apply by analogy to temporary staff.

This conclusion shall apply from 1 May 2004.

By the Heads of Administration