Guidance: Making merit-based employment decisions
Guidance on making appointments on merit and applying a merit-based approach to other employment decisions.
Taking a merit-based approach helps us recruit and retain a highly capable workforce that has the skills and experience to serve New Zealanders. It is critical to maintaining public trust in the professionalism and political neutrality of the Public Service.
This guidance also responds to findings from the 2025 Public Service Census that nearly a third of public servants don’t feel confident that people in their organisations get jobs based on merit.
This guidance supports:
- Public Service agencies to make appointments on merit under section 72 of the Public Service Act 2020
- Crown entities to ensure the impartial selection of suitably qualified candidates under section 118 of the Crown Entities Act 2004
- agencies and entities to meet their good employer obligations by applying a merit-based approach to all employment decisions.
This guidance does not create new obligations. It builds on existing Public Service Commission guidance and supports agencies and entities to meet their legislative obligations.
The guidance emphasises that:
- merit should be defined by the skills, experience and thinking required by each role when making appointments
- appointment policies and processes must be robust and fair
- all employment decisions (including development, progression, performance and remuneration) should be made using a similar merit-based approach.
Agencies and entities can also build trust that all employment decisions are based on merit by maintaining respectful and inclusive workplaces where everyone can do their best work, collecting and reporting workforce data and employee feedback, and being transparent about employment policies.
This guidance is not exhaustive. It provides some examples of good practice and links to more detailed resources.
Define merit by the requirements of each role
The definition of 'merit' or 'suitably qualified', will vary based on the needs of each role. Vague or incomplete criteria increases the risk that poor quality and subjective decisions will be made. Therefore, accurate job descriptions and clear, comprehensive skills-based criteria are necessary to achieve robust merit-based appointments.
Examples of good practice include:
- ensuring job descriptions and selection criteria are defined by the skills, experience and thinking required by each role, including (but not limited to) qualifications, technical skills and knowledge, sector and stakeholder knowledge, and skills like critical thinking, emotional intelligence and communication skills
- recognising the value of:
- cultural capability and the knowledge needed within the Public Service to work effectively with Māori
- knowledge and skills gained in different sectors, including the private sector, and in both paid and unpaid work
- knowledge and skills held by people from different social and cultural backgrounds.
Use robust and fair appointment processes
Appointments must be supported by robust and fair decision-making processes. 'Merit' or 'suitably qualified' cannot be measured objectively and different decision makers may reach different conclusions. Strong processes, therefore, help ensure decisions are evidence-based and able to be tested.
a) Apply the fundamentals of good appointment practice
Agencies and entities should make sure that:
- appointment and promotion processes are procedurally fair and comply with legal and policy requirements, including privacy requirements
- job advertisements clearly state any required checks or clearances
- integrity concerns are identified early and are managed quickly and appropriately
- all participants act independently.
b) Use robust appointments processes
Examples of good practice include:
- advertising roles widely to attract a wide pool of talent from which to select the best person for the role
- accurately describing the requirements of the role, using plain language and accessible formats to ensure all applicants understand the requirements of the role
- requiring qualifications when these are essential to perform the role, such as needing to hold a practicing certificate when applying for a solicitor role
- when specific qualifications are not essential to the role, being clear that applications are welcome from people with either qualifications or equivalent skills and knowledge developed in paid and/or unpaid work
- making reasonable accommodations available throughout selection processes to ensure everyone can participate
- using reliable and valid assessment methods to improve the quality and consistency of decisions for example, pre-determined criteria, structured interviews with standardised questions and rating scales, and calibration of assessments across panel members
- including a range of skills, experience and perspectives on panels to strengthen the quality of decision-making
- ensuring panel members understand the selection criteria and common decision-making risks, such as different kinds of bias, including the risk of conflating confidence with competence
- aligning starting salary offers with the salaries of existing employees in the same or similar roles and with the same or similar skills, to ensure that unjustified salary anomalies are not created between new and existing employees
- reviewing appointments recommendations for robustness before decisions are finalised.
Apply a merit-based approach to other employment decisions
The Public Service and New Zealanders benefit not only when we hire people with the right skills and experience but also when we recognise and develop the skills within our existing workforce. Applying a merit-based approach to all employment decisions, including development, progression, performance, and remuneration helps us maintain the high performing workforce we need.
Examples of good practice include:
- applying comprehensive skills-based criteria based on the needs of each role
- using robust decision-making policies and processes, that are supported by checks and balances
- basing decisions on evidence of capability, rather than the degree to which employees promote themselves
- providing development opportunities to all employees
- supporting career pathways into higher paid occupational groups and leadership roles
- setting clear performance expectations and giving constructive feedback to help employees develop and meet expectations.
Build trust that all decisions are based on merit
Monitoring workforce demographics, salaries, and feedback from employees helps us, among other things, to identify whether we are operating fair, merit-based policies and practices.
Agencies and entities can build the trust in the merit-based nature of all employment decisions by:
- maintaining respectful and inclusive workplaces that reflect the Public Service Code of Conduct, and enable everyone to do their best work and demonstrate their merits
- monitoring and reporting workforce data and employee feedback to help determine whether merit-based employment decisions are being consistently made
- being transparent about employment policies, to build confidence that employment decisions are robust and fair.
Additional resources
The Code of Conduct for the Public Sector
Guidance: Public Service Principles – Merit-based Appointments
Model Standards: Workforce Assurance
Model Standards: Positive and Safe Workplaces
Lead Toolkit for Employing Disabled People
Conducting a Review of Appointments Processes
Te Taunaki Public Service Census
System leadership for workforce diversity in the Public Service
Pay Gaps and Pay Equity: Closing pay gaps