Civil Service | JobMap

Civil Service

Local, state and federal government jobs covered by civil service laws are called “civil service jobs.” Almost all government jobs in the New York area are covered by these laws.

Civil services laws were designed to make sure hiring is fair. They were also created to make sure workers are treated fairly once they are on the job. For instance, if a civil service worker is having trouble at work, there is a special review process they go through. They are given chances to improve. Civil service workers can usually only be fired if they cannot or will not do their jobs. That’s different from workers who work for most private employers. Private companies can often fire non-union workers for almost any reason at all. Members of labor unions have some job protections. Almost all New York area workers can appeal to government agencies if they feel they have been discriminated against at work because of their gender, race, disability or sexual orientation. Civil service workers also often have better benefits than the benefits many private companies give their workers.

Because many green jobs are government jobs, many of them are civil service jobs, too. To get one, you might have to take a civil service test of one kind or another. You also might not. For example, only about two out of ten federal civil service jobs require a test. Click here for a list of federal civil service jobs that require a test.

Whether you will have to take a civil service test to get a government job often depends on which government agency is doing the hiring. It can also depend on how much education and experience you have to have to get the job. No matter if a job requires a test, one thing many civil service jobs have in common is that people applying for jobs are ranked on hiring lists. They are ranked in order of their test scores or abilities.

If you don’t have to take a civil service test, your resume and job experience often serve as the test. That means, once your resume and application are read and approved, your application will be ranked and your name will be added to a list of people qualified for this job. If a government agency has job openings for this job, you will be called for an interview as your number on the list comes up.

Here’s an example of how this all works: Say you want to apply for an entry-level job at the New York City Sanitation Department to get work as a recycling collector. (Read more about Sanitation recycling jobs here [LG1] .) First, to apply for this job, you must take a civil service test. Be sure to study for the test. Practice guides are available at many libraries, online and at bookstores. Information about a Lower Manhattan bookstore that specializes in civil service test guides is listed in the resources below.

If you pass the test for an entry-level sanitation job, your name will be added to the list of approved applicants. The higher your score on the test, the closer to the top of the list you will be. If you are number 207 on the list because you got a good grade on the test, and the Sanitation Department puts out a call for 250 new workers, you will get an interview. If you are number 1217 on the list, you will have to wait until the Sanitation Department needs more workers and calls up more people on the list. You can often stay on a list for a year or longer before your number gets called. So don’t count on getting hired quickly by a government agency.

Civil service jobs aren’t just for entry-level employees and union workers, by the way. Many government jobs that require college or graduate degrees, and government jobs for people in management, are also covered by civil service laws.

Each government agency has rules about what kind of workers it will hire without using a civil service test.

Here are some things you should know about large government agencies that hire civil service workers:

New York City Government

Most New York City government jobs are covered by civil service laws and require tests. These include green jobs such as air pollution inspector, environmental technician, and transit electrical helper.

Hiring for New York City government civil service jobs is usually run by the agency doing the hiring. The tests themselves are given by the City’s Department of Citywide Administrative Services. Click here for a list of job titles that require that you pass a civil service exam. This link will connect you to a list of tests happening soon.

Often, city agencies need to hire new employees before a test can be scheduled. People apply for these jobs directly, without taking a test first. These kinds of jobs—the New York City jobs you can get without taking a test—are called “provisional” jobs. If you get one of these provisional jobs, you start it just like any other employee, even though you haven’t taken the test. If a test for that job gets scheduled, you have to take that test and pass it to keep your job.

New York State

New York State agencies, like the Department of Environmental Conservation, have many civil service jobs. Some of these jobs require a test. For other jobs, there is no official test. But your experience and education count as a kind of “test.” In cases like this, your application will be read and ranked. Once jobs become available, your name will be called from a list for an interview. There are other New York State civil service jobs that don’t require you to get on a list. They still offer civil service job protections. For these jobs, people are hired simply because their job qualifications.

Federal Agencies:

Most federal jobs are covered by civil service laws. As mentioned above, eight out of 10 federal civil service tests don’t require a test. That means that getting a federal civil service job depends a lot on your résumé and application. Please note that résumés for federal jobs should be written differently than most résumés. They should provide extremely detailed information about the job experiences and education that make you a good candidate for the jobs you are applying for. There is a great website that discusses how to write a résumé for a federal government job, called the Federal Jobs Network. In fact, Federal Jobs Network can tell you almost everything you need to know about federal jobs and how to apply for them.

Here are more resources that can help you look for a civil service job:

Jobs with the City of New York

General Information About New York City Civil Service System

New York City Government Careers Website

New York City Current & Upcoming Civil Service Exams

New York City Civil Exams Archive (lists job categories covered by exams)

New York State (and local government) Jobs

General Information about New York State Civil Service

Job Openings with Cities, Towns and Villages in New York State

Metropolitan Transportation Authority Civil Service Exam Schedule

New York State Job Openings

US Government Civil Service Job Resources