Brazilians chase civil servants' "train of happiness"

By Raymond Colitt

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Late into the night, students diligently rehearse exam questions at dozens of schools in downtown Brasilia that offer people the chance for a better, more prosperous life -- that of a Brazilian bureaucrat.

Generous pay, stability, and often easy hours will attract applications from as many as 10 million people this year for civil service jobs. Brazilians often refer to getting a government job as catching the "train of happiness."

In a country with glaring poverty, grossly inadequate public services and a towering public debt, civil servants do very well, as the many luxurious homes with pools, servants and shiny cars in the capital Brasilia's residential areas show.

There are an average of 700 applicants per job and some candidates study for years to pass an entry exam.

"My parents are civil servants and I want the pay and security they have so I can buy a house and other things," said Rodrigo Hugueney, a 19 year-old law student in the capital Brasilia. He is applying at one of the two state-owned banks.

The problem is that Brazil's bloated public sector is a burden on business and the economy, leaving little money to invest in education or infrastructure.

Business leaders frequently complain about excessive red tape and the complex maze of requirements they face in getting environmental licenses of even filing their taxes. Rather than slashing jobs, the government is adding more.

Despite an economic boom in recent years, Brazil ranks poorly in international competitiveness comparisons, due mostly to an unwieldy state apparatus that consumes about 38 percent of gross domestic product.