computers down - workers out
WORKERS, JULY 2003 ISSUE
Government workers have expressed frustration at unreliable computer systems over the past few weeks. Civil servants in the Home Office and the Inland Revenue have walked out as a result of poorly implemented systems, the product of private IT partners.
The first payments under the government's new tax credit scheme were due in April. The Inland Revenue's new computer system was not able to cope. People whose claims had not been processed besieged tax offices. They had to wait hours for hand-written giro cheques, even though the system was meant to work on direct payment to bank accounts. Under pressure, staff in several offices walked out for short periods.
The Revenue IT contract is one of the biggest anywhere in the public service. The problem with tax credits is only one of a series of high-profile failures from EDS, the Revenue's US-based "strategic partner". EDS is one of the bidders for the new contract, due to be awarded next year.
Members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) walked out from the Home Office as well. Home Office payroll and pensions staff protested about what they described as "an unworkable computer system".
A new payroll system was introduced in 2001 to pay salaries to 70,000 civil servants working for the Home Office and its agencies. It has never performed in the way it should have done and needs manual support never originally intended. Extra payments were made to staff operating these systems, but were withdrawn in March this year, even though problems continue to occur.
A new pensions system is also flawed according to the union and there have been earlier well-publicised IT failures at the Home Office. The pension and payroll systems were provided by CMG. The deal the Home Office struck with CMG was hailed as a breakthrough in public-private partnership agreements when signed in five years ago.