Civil servants' wages and promotions should be based on competency and achievement rather than seniority, the government's Administrative Reform Promotion Headquarters said in a basic plan approved Friday.
Nobuteru Ishihara, state minister in charge of administrative reform, presented the plan to the body, which is headed by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, government officials said.
Although the "career" system for elite bureaucrats will be maintained, the proposal marks a departure from the conventional system of determining salary and promotion based on seniority, they said.