Chapter 3: Acting Appointments and Allowances

300. In the case of short absence of less than 14 days there will be, in general, no need for an acting appointment and no acting allowance will be payable. But where the nature of the duties attaching to the office is such as cannot reasonably be expected to be performed by another officer in the same Department or there is a statutory requirement that the post be filled, then an acting appointment may be made, regardless of the length of the absence of the substantive holder of the office except that no acting appointment should be made under delegated powers for any period less than fourteen (14) days without the prior approval of The Permanent Secretary of The Ministry.
301. In special circumstances, for example, owing to the length of the absence or to the fact that by law or regulation certain matters can be dealt with only by the officer holding the senior post or an officer acting in that post, an acting appointment may be made.
302. In making acting appointments the claims of all suitable candidates will be considered, and while no claim to act as of right will be recognized every consideration will be given to the record of service and suitability of the officer next in seniority in the Department, or; grade in which the acting appointment is to be made. Recommendations for acting appointments shall state whether or not the person recommended is the senior officer in the Department or grade, and where this is not the case, detailed reasons must be given in respect of each person in that same Department or grade in preference to whom it is proposed that the person recommended to act should be appointed.
303. The appointment of an officer to act in a post will be made by The Governor General (except where the power to appoint has been delegated) acting in accordance with recommendations of The Public Service Commission. The procedure that is to be followed is set out in The Public Service Commission Regulations.
304. Any recommendation to the Commission for the making of an acting appointment must contain a statement whether or not the officer recommended for acting appointment is in every way qualified to perform all the duties of the office in which he is to act, and also state that the officer recommended to act will assume the full duties and responsibilities of the post in question. An acting appointment may be made only if the officer is capable of, and will in fact perform all the duties of the post in which he is required to act.
305. When making a recommendation for an acting appointment, Heads of Department's should consider also all the consequential acting appointments that may be required and should recommend, or; make appointments accordingly.
306. When an acting appointment is approved, The Permanent Secretary of The Public Service, who must be notified when an acting appointment is made under delegated powers, will arrange to have the appointment Gazetted.
307. Where it is expected that the acting appointment may be for an indefinite period, this should be clearly stated on P.S.C Form 3, and Heads of Department's are required to notify The Permanent Secretary of The Ministry of The Public Service of the date on which the acting appointment ceases.
308. In absence of special circumstances recommendations for acting appointment submitted less than fourteen days in advance may not be proceeded with and no appointment made.
309. The following powers have been delegated under The Public Service (Delegation of Powers) Order to Permanent Secretaries of Departments integrated within Ministries and to Heads of Departments where the Department is not organized under a Permanent Secretary.
310. To appoint an officer to act in an office of responsibility other than the office of Head or Deputy Head of Department within The Ministry or Department with which the empowered officer is concerned, provided that no such appointment shall be made for any period in excess of four (4) weeks, and the officer so appointed shall be the senior officer in the Department in the rank immediately below the rank of the office of responsibility in which he is to act.
311. Where the power to make an acting appointment has not been delegated the Head of Department shall submit his recommendations (through The Permanent Secretary) on P.S.C Form 3 to The Permanent Secretary of The Ministry of The Public Service for transmission by him to The Public Service Commission. In those cases where a Head of Department's recommendations, if approved would mean the super session of an officer or officers, a full statement of the reasons for the proposed super session must be given by the Head of Department on the reverse of P.S.C Form 3.
312. Heads of Departments having made an acting appointment under delegated powers, must report at once to The Permanent Secretary of The Ministry of The Public Service if it then becomes apparent that the four week's period will be exceeded.
313. In some circumstances, and particularly where the acting appointment is for a short period, an officer may be authorized in writing to act on behalf of a senior officer for certain specific function, and in this event there will be no need for a Gazetted acting appointment.
314. An acting appointment cannot be held to have been made merely by the insertion of provision for the post in the Estimates, and claims for acting allowances in respect of such posts will not necessarily be admitted.
315. An acting allowance will be payable only to an officer who is formally appointed by notice in the Official Gazette to discharge the duties of an office of responsibility in place of, or; in addition to, the duties of his substantive post. The rates for acting allowances (and responsibility allowances) are set out in The Public Service Act.
316. An acting allowance will be payable from the date of commencement of his acting appointment to the date immediately preceding the date of its termination (both days inclusive), subject to the provisions of General Orders 317-318.
317. An officer who is drawing acting allowance may continue to draw it while he is on vacation leave not exceeding six (6) days at any one time, or; twenty four (24) days in the leave year, provided that it has not been necessary to appoint another officer to perform the duties of the post in which he is acting.
318. An officer who, while drawing acting allowance, is incapacitated by illness may receive his acting allowance from the commencement of such incapacity unless it has been necessary to appoint an officer to perform the duties of the temporarily vacant post, in which case the officer so appointed will draw it from the date (inclusive) of his appointment and the first officer will cease to draw it with effect from the same date.
319. Except in the case of vacation leave and sick leave as provided for in General Orders 317 and 318 no officer may draw acting allowance while on leave.
320. An officer appointed to act in another post will be eligible for the allowances attaching to the higher office at the rates prescribed for that office.