Master of Public Administration

Running Head: PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
0
Public
Administration
Student Name:
Student University:

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 1
Answer 1: Personnel management is referred to the process of collecting, using and
maintaining a workforce that is highly satisfied to achieve its targets. It is also considered as a
sub-category of human resource management approach in the company that also focuses on
administration. This approach has gone through a number of changes in the past few decades.
The evolution of public personnel management started from managing slaves to the modern
human resource management era. There were many milestones in the evolution of public
personnel management which were directed towards the promoting and protecting the rights
of employees while also securing their rights (Llorens, et al., 2017). From no rights (slaves),
the rights of employees were mainly recognized in the industrial revolution era. After this era,
the reliability of organisations on their labours increased drastically which lead to the trade
union movement era in which workers joined together for the recognition and protection of
their rights.
This was a major milestone in public personnel management since the government also
started recognising and enforce labour laws and employee protection legislation to make sure
that companies are not violating the rights of their employees. These changes lead to the
social responsibility era in which companies evolved to become social enterprises that are
focused on maintaining a balance between the interests of their stakeholders which include
employees as well (Hatmaker, et al., 2017). After this era, the scientific management era
begins which emphasis on the use of scientific methods while managing human capital in an
organisation. Later on, human relation era began in which the company promoted a positive
relationship with their workers to improve their overall performance. After that, behavioural
science era started that focused on understanding the importance of behavioural and
interaction patterns of employees while forming workplace policies.
In the modern times, the human resource management era allows companies to make sure
that they implement a collaborative approach while also focusing on their sustainable growth

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 2
without negatively affecting their employees. In the new personnel management system,
companies make sure that their employees work along with them and they remain satisfied
from their jobs so that they can achieve their corporate goals and stay relevant in the
changing business environment. In the new public management, the rights of employees are
given substantial importance and they are recognized and enforced throughout the US. There
are various decisions which are taken by agencies in relation to behavioural science with an
objective to promote wellbeing of employees while also ensuring that they are satisfied from
their work (Herrera & Miller, 2018). This approach ensures that employees’ rights are not
breached and they have a platform through which they can enforce their rights.
Answer 2: There are various myths and realities surrounding public employment in the
United States (US) which affects both employees as well as public administration. It is
difficult to separate the myths from the realities however it is important in order to determine
the common claims which are made regarding public employees, government spending and
taxes. One of the common myths is that the government employees earn more than compared
to private sector workers or they are overpaid. It is a common misconception that federal
employees receive better benefits and salary packages than compared to private sector
workers for similar jobs. A study conducted in 2018 by a group called American
Transparency found that a new minimum wage criterion is introduced for public sector
employees in which they made around $100,000 or more. This study was conducted on 78
departments and independent agencies (Singman, 2018).
However, these figures are misleading and the group that conducted this research overlooked
many important sets which include salary comparison, occupations, budgets, education, age
and others. It is found that salary comparisons are not an effective way to determine whether
federal workers are more than private sector employees because they tend to be more
educated, older and concentrated towards occupations which is not the case with private

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 3
sector workers. It is reported that even when retirement and healthcare were included the
benefits of public sector workers are comparatively 4 per cent behind their counterparts who
are working in public sectors. Another common myth is that most of the federal workers are
located in Washington D.C (Shaub, 2019). It is a common misconception that most of the
public administrative workers live and work in nearby areas of Washington.
However, the reality is that the vast majority of public sector employees are located outside
the Washington area. These employees are employed throughout the US in many major states
such as Texas and California. It is a common myth that the government is shrinking and
major politicians such as President Trump are kicking people of their administration in order
to reduce the number of people working for the government. However, the reality is
completely different and there are no evidences that support these claims. The number of
federal jobs in the US has remained relatively constant which is the case in the past several
decades (Moretti & Wilson, 2017). Furthermore, it is also a common myth that private sector
delivers more money than compared to the government. However, this is not the case and
many government agencies or departments generate a hefty amount of money which
contributes to the nation’s economy.
Answer 4: While managing public agencies, policy making, program evaluation,
performance management, and budgeting plays a critical role; evolution of these factors make
sure that the government is able to effectively manage public agencies which benefits the
entire nation. These factors are directly related with the core management functions regarding
how organisations are developed, allocate their resources and benchmark their success
(Pulakos, et al., 2019). Policymaking is referred to the practice in which different levels of
the government formulate and apply policies. Through policymaking, the government
develops plans for different public agencies, interest groups and federal offices to establish