Employment via connection
29.06.2021.
Employment without a public tender and a clearly stipulated procedure may arouse suspicion of corruption and nepotism among candidates. Such freedom was granted to companies with majority ownership of counties, cities and municipalities.
As employers, they do not have to follow the rules applicable to civil service and the administrative bodies of local and regional self-government units. Thus they do not have the legal obligation to call a public tender, conduct tests or interviews with candidates, make a decision on the selection of candidates, or inform about the results of a possible tender procedure.
Free selection of the recruitment procedure
This means that they are free to decide how to employ and select employees, which often raises doubts about favouring certain candidates, especially when they are in some kind of private or business relationship with decision-makers in those companies. This problem, which is present in public services in a somewhat different form, has been pointed out by the ombudsman for years in reports to the Croatian Parliament, but nothing has changed in order to prevent the possibility of corruption and nepotism in employment.
To prevent the possibility of corruption and nepotism
A new opportunity for this is the anti-corruption program for companies with majority ownership of local and regional self-government units (LC (R)SGUs) for the period 2021-2022. In addition to their specific position and ownership structure, they often have a large number of employees and manage significant financial resources, which means they also pose a corruption risk that should not be overlooked.
The same problem in public services
Every citizen of Croatia has the right, under equal conditions, to participate in public affairs and be admitted to public services, says the Constitution. Citizens often doubt a different practice is used, they are convinced that employment is non-transparent and candidates are predetermined. Although employers in public services are obliged to call a public tender, they are generally free to decide on the rest of the procedure themselves.
