Clerical Officer

The Role

The duties of Clerical Officers (COs) may vary depending on the nature of work carried out by the employing department/organisation. This involves such clerical and administrative tasks which may be assigned to the employee from time to time. The following outlines the type of work that you may be required to undertake, if appointed.

• Communicating and dealing with the public/customers e.g. responding to queries and providing information face-to-face, by telephone and/or via email;

• Using Information Technology on a daily basis, e.g. MS Office applications (including Word and Excel), database, email and internet;

• Supporting line-managers and colleagues, and working as part of a team in delivering services;

• Providing the highest quality standards in customer service;

• Approaching work in a careful and methodical manner, displaying accuracy at all times, even when conducting routine/repetitive work;

• Maintaining high quality records in a thorough and organised manner;

• Checking all work thoroughly to ensure it is completed to a high standard;

• General clerical work e.g. carrying out routine accounts work, filing, photocopying, answering/making telephone calls, dealing with emails, reception desk duties, etc. under the supervision of a designated manager;

• Any other duties deemed appropriate.

Please note, the above is not an exhaustive list. Specific duties may vary depending on the role within the employing Department/Office.

IMPORTANT: The Clerical Officer Capability Framework will inform the assessment of candidates. Further information on the Capability Framework and preparation guidelines is set out in Appendix 1. In certain instances, positions may arise where specialist skills or experience is required. Suitable candidates may be selected for the purpose of filling such vacancies.

Vacancies

Applicants who are successful in this competition will be placed on a panel, in an order of merit. Vacancies which may arise for Clerical Officers may be filled from this panel. Such vacancies may exist in one of many Government Departments/Offices, or in an ‘agency’ of a Government Department. Please note, this may also include Garda Civilian positions in An Garda Síochána.

It is not envisaged that appointments will be made from this competition after 30th April 2027.

ESSENTIAL ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Candidates must by the closing date of 12th March 2026:

(a) have previous relevant work experience, preferably in a customer service office environment;

(b) have appropriate level and experience of relevant ICT Skills, e.g. proficiency in MS Office applications (Word, Excel), email and internet;

(c) have relevant knowledge and skills to undertake the duties of the position, including the ability to:

• take direction / follow instructions;

• organise and prioritise work effectively;

• work well with the public and colleagues;

• make good judgements and decisions considering the available information and following the relevant procedures or protocol;

• communicate in a clear, helpful and appropriate manner verbally, digitally, and in writing;

• take ownership and responsibility over work, become self-sufficient in their area of responsibility;

• be flexible, agile and resilient in the face of challenges or changing demands; maintain a ‘can-do’ attitude and seek support as necessary;

(d) be at least 17 years of age on or before the closing date of 12th March 2026;

(e) fulfil Citizenship, Health & Character, Garda Vetting & Security Clearance and Reference Check requirements (CLICK HERE for further information);

(f) ensure that they meet the criteria regarding Public & Civil Service Redundancy/Ill Health Retirement Schemes (CLICK HERE for further information).

Candidates should demonstrate the skills and capabilities under the three main Capability Dimensions identified for this role:

• Evidence Informed Delivery

• Communicating and Collaborating

• Building Future Readiness

It is important that candidates list their previous civil or public service employment, if they have availed of a voluntary redundancy or retirement scheme and/or are in receipt of an ill-health retirement pension. Failure to do so could lead to disciplinary action.

Employer of Choice

As an Employer of Choice the Civil Service has many flexible and family friendly policies e.g. Worksharing, Shorter Working Year, Remote Working (operated on a ‘blended’ basis) etc. All elective policies can be applied for in accordance with the relevant statutory provisions and are subject to the business needs of the organisation.

The Civil Service also operates a Mobility scheme for all general service grades. This scheme provides staff with career opportunities to learn and partake in diverse roles across a range of Civil Service organisations and geographical locations (subject to conditions).

PRINCIPAL CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

General

The appointment is to a permanent post in the Civil Service and is subject to the Civil Service Regulations Acts 1956 to 2005, the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 and any other Act for the time being in force relating to the Civil Service.

Salary

The Clerical Officer Standard Salary Scale applies to this position and is as follows:

Personal Pension Contribution (PPC) (rates effective from 1st February 2026)

€605.69, €639.04, €647.53, €664.05, €688.44, €712.80, €737.14, €754.87, €774.99, €798.31, €814.74, €837.85, €860.81, €896.63, €924.78 (LSI1), €949.31 (LSI2)

Long service increments may be payable after 3 (LSI1) and 6 (LSI2) years satisfactory service at the maximum of the scale.

The PPC pay rate applies when the individual is required to pay a Personal Pension Contribution (otherwise known as a main scheme contribution) in accordance with the rules of their main/personal superannuation scheme. This is different to a contribution in respect of membership of a Spouses’ and Children’s scheme, or the Additional Superannuation Contributions (ASC).

A different rate will apply where the appointee is not required to make a Personal Pension Contribution.

Important Note

Entry will be at the minimum of the scale and rate of remuneration will not be subject to negotiation and may be adjusted from time to time in line with Government pay policy. Subject to satisfactory performance, increments may be payable in line with current Government Policy.

Different terms and conditions may apply if, immediately prior to appointment, the appointee is a serving civil or public servant.

Payment will be made weekly in arrears by Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) into a bank account of your choice. Payment cannot be made until a bank account number and bank sort code has been supplied on appointment and statutory deductions from salary will be made as appropriate.

You will agree that any overpayment of salary, allowances, or expenses will be repaid by you in accordance with Circular 07/2018: Recovery of Salary, Allowances, and Expenses Overpayments made to Staff Members/Former Staff Members/Pensioners.

Headquarters

Headquarters will be such as may be designated from time to time by the Head of the Department/organisation. When required to travel on official duty the appointee will be paid appropriate travelling expenses and subsistence allowances, subject to normal civil service regulations.

Hours of Attendance

Hours of attendance will be fixed from time to time but will amount to not less than 41 hours 15 minutes gross per week or 35 hours net per week. Where extra attendance is necessary, overtime payments, or time off in lieu, will be allowed in accordance with the Civil Service overtime regulations.

Annual Leave

The Annual Leave allowance is 22 days rising to 23 days after 5 years’ service and to 24 days after 10 years’ service, 25 days after 12 years’ service and 26 after 14 years’ service. This allowance is subject to the usual conditions regarding the granting of annual leave in the civil service, is based on a five-day week and is exclusive of the usual public holidays.

Candidates with Disabilities - Reasonable Accommodations for the Selection Process

publicjobs has a key role to play in attracting candidates from all sectors of society, ensuring that routes to career opportunities are accessible to all who are interested. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all candidates.

If you have a disability or need reasonable accommodations made during the selection process, we strongly encourage you to share this with us so that we can ensure you get the support you need. Please note, this relates only to the selection process (e.g. online tests, interviews, etc.) and not workplace accommodations.

Reasonable accommodation in our selection process refers to adjustments and practical changes which would enable a disabled candidate to have an equal opportunity for this competition. Examples of adjustments we provide include the use of assistive technology, extra time, scribes and/or readers or a range of other accommodations.

Please be assured that having a disability or requiring adjustments will not impact on your progress in the selection process; you will not be at a disadvantage if you disclose your disability or requirements to us. Your disability and/or adjustments will be kept entirely confidential. Should you be successful, the disclosure of a disability for this stage of the process will not be passed onto the employing department unless you request that we do so.

If you have indicated on your application/profile that you require reasonable accommodations, you should upload a copy of your psychologist/medical report directly to your online application before submitting your application. You are required to include a copy of your medical/psychologist report before the closing date of the competition (3pm on Thursday 12th March 2026). Please do not email a copy of your report to the recruitment unit mailbox.

The purpose of the report is to provide publicjobs with information to act as a basis for determining reasonable accommodations, where appropriate. The information within these reports that is useful for us to see includes the outcome of any diagnostic tests conducted by your psychologist/doctor, and their summary of recommendations in relation to your requirements. You may redact (block out) parts of medical reports/psychologist’s reports that you feel are sensitive or unnecessary for the decision to make reasonable adjustments.

If you have previously applied for a competition with publicjobs and submitted a report (within the past 3 years), there will be an area on the online application where you can provide details of the previous competition and/or your previous candidate ID number. A member of the Assessment Services unit will check if your report is still on file (if you consented to this information being retained).

Next Steps

Should you come under consideration to proceed to subsequent stages of the selection process, information will be forwarded to you at the appropriate time.

General Information

The admission of a person to a competition, or invitation to attend interview, or a successful result letter, is not to be taken as implying that publicjobs is satisfied that such a person fulfils the requirements.

Prior to recommending any candidate for appointment to this position publicjobs will make all such enquiries that are deemed necessary e.g. health, character, employer references, security checks (including international checks), or any other enquiries as are deemed necessary to determine the suitability of that candidate.

Until all stages of the recruitment process have been fully completed a final determination cannot be made nor can it be deemed or inferred that such a determination has been made.

Security Clearance

You will be required to complete and return a Garda eVetting form should you come under consideration for appointment. This form will be forwarded to An Garda Síochána for security checks on all Irish and Northern Irish addresses at which you resided.

If you subsequently come under consideration for a position in another recruitment competition within 6 months of being vetted by publicjobs, please notify us as you may not be required to complete a further Garda Vetting Form.

If you have resided/studied in countries outside of the Republic of Ireland for a consecutive period of 12 months or more after the age of 18, it is mandatory for you to furnish a Police Clearance Certificate from those countries stating that you have no convictions recorded against you while residing there. You will need to provide a separate Police Clearance Certificate for each country you have resided in. The clearance Certificate must be dated after the date you left the country.

It is your responsibility to seek security clearances in a timely fashion as they can take some time. You cannot be appointed without this information being provided and deemed satisfactory by publicjobs.

Candidates should be aware that any information obtained in the Garda Vetting process can be made available to the employing authority.

Reschedule Requests

Requests for a reschedule or change to a candidate’s allocated date/time for assessment, interview, etc. may only be considered in exceptional circumstances (i.e. bereavement/illness). Reschedules cannot be guaranteed as there are often strict time frames around the running of competitions and we may request supporting documentation as evidence.

Candidates who are rescheduled will be scored with their rescheduled batch where applicable and may not be reinserted into their original batch. Please note that candidates who are permitted to reschedule will be given only one opportunity to do so.

Specific Candidate Criteria

In addition to fulfilling the eligibility criteria set out, candidates must:

• Have the knowledge and ability to discharge the duties of the post concerned;

• Be suitable on the grounds of health and character;

• Be suitable in all other relevant respects for appointment to the post concerned.

If successful, they will not be appointed to the post unless they:

• Agree to undertake the duties attached to the post and accept the conditions under which the duties are, or may be required to be, performed;

• Are fully competent and available to undertake, and fully capable of undertaking, the duties attached to the position.

Non-Refund of Expenses

Any expenses incurred by candidates whilst undertaking or attending any elements of the selection process will not be refunded.

Appointments from Panels and the Pre-Employment Checks Process

At the end of the selection process a panel(s) of qualified candidates is formed from which vacancies may be filled.

A panel is made up of candidates who have been deemed suitably qualified having successfully completed the assessment e.g. Testing, Interview, etc. The panel may consist of multiple batches as groups of candidates are brought through the full assessment process in response to the demand from clients.

As vacancies arise, they will be filled from the panel of suitably qualified candidates. It is not envisaged that appointments will be made from this competition after 30th April 2027.

When a candidate is placed on a panel, they will have to wait for a vacancy to arise that corresponds with their order of merit. Candidates are placed by order of merit into batches, so candidates should be aware that there may be already batches in place ahead of them and their overall placement on the panel could be affected by this.

publicjobs has no foresight as to how many vacancies may be filled over the lifetime of the panel, and potentially candidates may not be reached on the order of merit. Qualification and placement on a panel is not a guarantee of appointment to a position.

Should your place on the panel be reached and you come under consideration for a position, several pre-employment checks must be completed before a candidate is deemed suitable for appointment. These checks are carried out to satisfy publicjobs that the candidate fulfils all necessary requirements.

Prior to assigning any candidate for appointment to the position, publicjobs will make all such enquiries necessary to determine the suitability and eligibility of that candidate. This process will consist of an assessment of your general eligibility, health and character (including Garda Vetting and security clearance for time spent abroad), and your employment history.

If you are currently employed, please note a reference from your current employer will be required in advance of your assignment from the panel. This will be requested at the latter stages of the pre-employment checks process.

Other

Elements of the selection process may be undertaken by other parties. In such circumstances it will be necessary for your information to be shared between publicjobs and these parties in order for your application to be processed.

Honesty Agreement

Honesty and integrity are key values in the Civil and Public Service. Candidates are therefore required to complete this selection process honestly, independently and in accordance with the rules and guidelines.

The use of online systems, software or artificial intelligence to facilitate completion of assessment stages, is not permitted. Candidate responses and submissions for relevant assessment stages are subject to checks for response pattern, duplication, originality and a range of other checks. As this is a competitive process, these checks are required to ensure fairness and originality of work submitted.

Where a breach occurs, publicjobs will consider sanctions which may result in disqualification from the competition. In completing the assessment stages, you are confirming that you consent for your work to be subject to this process, as relevant.

Overview

The Civil Service Capability Framework is the new model which will be used for recruitment and selection for roles across the Civil and Public Service. The framework was developed based on extensive research and consultation and supports the Civil and Public Service in building the workforce of the future.

Our ambition is to attract, empower and develop a diversity of people, with the capability and talent to collaboratively deliver excellence, on behalf of our government and the people of Ireland.

The Civil Service Capability Framework for Clerical Officer will be used as a basis for selection for the Clerical Officer role.

Exploring and strengthening capability requires us to consider the whole person. The framework builds on the competency-based approach to consider a wider variety of factors that may influence performance, including: behaviours/past experience, skills, strengths, knowledge, values, motivation and interests.