The Size of Public Service from the Viewpoint of Personnel Policy

Abstract

The size of employment has always been a crucial question of the Hungarian public service, and it has been a real struggle to reach a final consensus about whether it is kept too high or low. However, the debate is rarely supported by investigative studies based on reliable, accurate and easily identifiable data. Nonetheless, one of the few exceptions involves the work of Lajos Lőrincz regarding the public service personnel in terms of quality, quantity and changes of managerial and strategic directions. The aim of this paper is to base the line of reasoning on his traditions, while examining his findings in an international comparison. In addition, it intends to highlight the drawbacks of personnel policies, which has directly affected the headcount level according to the opinion of the author, and it also points out that these shall be overcome in order to have a well-organized and functional personnel policy.