The construction of any statehood is always accompanied by the creation of the institution of public service. The value of this process is extremely great due to the importance of the functions that this service performs to solve both domestic tasks and international cooperation tasks. A special property of the civil service institution is that its units operate in all areas of the state’s activity and at all levels of government. That is why the concept and principles of public service are the most important aspect of not only theoretical development, but also practical law-making.
The main purpose of the civil service is to ensure the effective implementation of the functions of the state in all spheres of its presence in society. A fairly large number of legal acts are related to the regulation of the civil service of the Russian Federation, the main of which is the federal law “On Public Service”. It also contains reference norms to more than 20 other normative acts.
As the most important social institution, public service, the concept, principles, types of its organization and practical implementation act as the objectively necessary condition for the effective functioning of other institutions of society and the state, social and economic activity.
The civil service as a social institution arose and developed with a close connection with the development process of society itself. That is why it is now organized in such a way as to contribute as efficiently as possible to maintaining the systemic integrity of society and its unity in fulfilling socially significant tasks.
The traditional practice is to classify the civil service into two types.
The first of them is civil, it can be either general-purpose or special. A general-purpose service does not have a sectoral division and represents the fulfillment of professional duties by an entity within the framework of government bodies or other government structures. The special civil service is distinguished by its pronounced industry purpose, for example, service in the courts, the prosecutor's office, the diplomatic service, etc.
The second type of civil service - militarized - involves the fulfillment of specific competencies in the armed forces of the state, the police, customs authorities, the Ministry of Emergencies and other areas.
The most important condition for building an effective civil service is the principles by which it is formed and operates. The prevailing principles of public service are the most important legal provisions that reflect the relationships and patterns of its organization, as well as the leading evolutionary trends of this institution. Almost all principles of public service are enshrined in the relevant legal acts that govern its implementation. In theoretical sources, as a rule, various reasons are given on which the principles of civil service are classified. Consider those that are specifically enshrined in the legislation of the Russian Federation.
1. The principle of the rule of law assumes that all existing laws of the Russian Federation dominate in their legal force over various kinds of departmental instructions and administrative acts.
2. The principle of priority of human rights requires that all civil servants in their activities be guided by the interests of citizens and respect fundamental human rights, which are recognized as dominant over the interests of the state itself.
3. The principles of public service, ensuring the systemic integrity of the institution of public authority throughout the country. This principle objectively follows from the federal form of the state-territorial structure of Russia.
4. The principle of separation of branches of power, positioning the legal status of the state, implies self-limitation of power and balancing of one branch of another by a clear distribution of powers between them.
5. The principle of equal access for citizens to professional vacancies in institutions and public service bodies.
6. The principles of public service, providing a hierarchical system of building its bodies, in which decisions of higher authorities are binding on lower ones.
7. The principle of unity puts forward the requirement of uniformity for all its types and forms, regardless of regional and level implementation.
8. The principle of professionalism establishes that public service is a highly professional activity, and therefore it is possible to equip the apparatus on a competitive basis.
9. The principle of publicity is the openness and accessibility to every citizen of any information relating to his personal activity.
10. The principle of responsibility of entities acting in the public service for the improper implementation of its requirements and rules.
11. The principle of personnel stability involves the implementation of a policy of continuity and retention of personnel.
All the principles considered are organically interconnected into an integrated system, which, in turn, contributes to the development of a high-quality personnel policy of the state.