The ABC over the weekend had the thrilling news that the world famous public servant who injured herself having sex on a work trip and claimed compo is having her payment challenged in the highest court in the land:
Comcare initially allowed the claim, but then reversed the decision.
After a long legal battle, the full bench [...]

The Australian has grim news of just how the Gillard Government is going to plug the gap of its runaway spending.
With the bodies of EL1s and 2s it seems:
Finance Minister Penny Wong said the public service would be asked to find $580 million in savings to help fund the NDIS and Gonski.
The savings, over four [...]

The Canberra Labor MPs are raising a ruckus over Tony Abbott’s plans to balance the books on his paid parental leave scheme by excluding women who work for the public service.
(Presumably because business is being asked to fund the scheme)
The Liberals are scrambling to rein in the costs of their paid parental leave scheme [...]

Over the past election cycle I have heard just about everything about what is going to happen to the APS, after the inevitable election of an Abbott Federal Government. In recent days Tony has said he will move APS jobs to regional areas, Big Joe has been saying for months that the coalition will cut [...]

It is pleasing to see the TCC President is finally focussing on areas in the Valley apart from his beloved Calwell.
Perhaps my reports are starting to hit home. The latest is that he has launched a petition calling on the federal government to keep and even boost the number of public servants in the [...]

Public servants and other employees who have secure employment and are happy doing what they are doing and where they are doing it have one major advantage: they are less likely to find themselves on the scrap heap when they are 60.
The federal and ACT public service, in addition to a swag of professional [...]

Simon Crean’s just on the tv right now calling for a spill and asking Kevin Rudd to stand as leader.
So there’s definitely a thing on now.
Where the numbers lie remains to be seen.
Remember that a change of leadership will probably bring on an election and certainly massive ministerial changes so all our public service friends [...]

Hi rioters, I am looking at applying for a promotion and have to do a selection criteria up. I’m awesome but I’m not good at selling myself.
Has anyone used one of the many companies that write the criteria for you? If so any good ones to speak of?
Cheers

Alan Moran, one of those cheery folk from the Institute of Public Affairs, has have been hard at work devising an action plan to assist the now inevitable Abbott administration to achieve some of their fiscal objectives. His efforts are up on the Catallaxy Files.
You will be happy to know that the IPA’s identified [...]

Dianne Gray has blogged at length about the kafkaesque nightmare of the Australian Taxation Office.
It’s only one side of the story, but quite a read.

Check out this photo:
Can you guess what ABC News story it is being used to illustrate?
‘Appointment of government department supremos’ (fat cats — get it?)

The ABC has reassuring noises from Zed Seselja over not needing to fear an Abbott Government because the job losses will only be 4,000 rather than 12,000:
Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has pledged to cut 12,000 jobs from the Commonwealth public service if he wins government in September.
But Mr Seselja has told a Legislative [...]

Government News has the story on Finance consolidating thousands of procurement files into one single CSV file which will be of great interest to all of you trying to sell to Government:
Speaking at the Kickstart technology media conference on the Sunshine Coast on Sunday, newly appointed Australian Government Procurement Coordinator and Chief Technology Officer, [...]

Labor Senator Kate Lundy is banging the drum as to what a Liberal government could do to Canberra:
Tony Abbott has once again confirmed his plans to cut the federal public service – meaning 20,000 people would lose their jobs.
The policy if fully implemented would put 18 per cent of the city’s commonwealth workers out [...]

Senator Gary Humphries is putting on a brave face to point out forced redundancies from the public service:
A series of leaked emails received by ACT Liberal Senator Gary Humphries has revealed that the Australian Bureau of Statistics has identified the first 49 employees that will lose their jobs under a new wave of cuts.
“Senator Lundy [...]

The NT News is very excited by Liberal Plans to move public service departments to a new Australia in the far north.
Labor Senator Kate Lundy is asking the warring local liberal factions what they think of this plan?
Today Tony Abbott has let the cat out of the bag on his plan to force people to [...]

The Herald Sun is running Trish Crossin’s take on her political execution by Prime Minister Gillard.
There are a few remarkable things in there.
It’s bizarre the Prime Minister’s Office wouldn’t have taken the trouble to find some role somewhere for a Senator surplus to requirements.
But perhaps most ominous for Canberra is the sense that Ms [...]

So late last year Mrs LSWCHP came home from her job with a large Federal Agency, rolled her eyes, and announced that there was going to be a restructure at her office. This was actually not as much of a drama as you might think, because it was the fifth (IIRC) restructure she’d been through [...]

Government news has a story on moves to charge for online access to the Style Manual.
Desperate gouging or reasonable cost recovery?

Paywalling the style manual
Sensible cost recovery
We’ve already paid for it!
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Prime Minister Gillard has just taken the very unusual step of announcing the date of this year’s federal election.
It’s to be September 14 which will give our public servants something to be going on with.

Government News has the exciting word that the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education is hunting around for a supremo to run the huge Square Kilometre Array radio telescope.
According to the tender documents the SKA Project director will be required to “work with and advise Australian federal and state governments and [...]

Liberal Senator Gary Humphries is deeply concerned at cuts to the pot plants in the Department of Immigration and Citizenship:
For example, answers to Questions on Notice received from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship reveal that in just over four months DIAC has removed over two thirds of the plants that formerly adorned their offices.
“Despite [...]

It is mid of night now, I wake up this time every day. I believe I am in a serious case of bullying, but who can help me ?
 I need support and help. I do not know what I should do. I need people to help me and give me advice, or to go to details [...]

The ABC has a warning for public servants:
The annual State of the Service Report emphasises the need to build and maintain public trust in the impartiality and integrity of the APS and individual public servants.
In discussing the findings, Commissioner Stephen Sedgwick says it follows the discussion about the capacity of public servants to engage [...]

Attorney-General Nicola Roxon is just now announcing the Chief Justice of the Federal Court is going to be the next appointee to the High Court of Australia.
Of local impact is the strong views of the new High Court Justice when it comes to the quality of legislative drafting coming out of our own public service.
Fun [...]

The Canberra Times has the endlessly depressing news that the Administrative Appeals Tribunal has ruled that trying to help a poorly performing employee improve is now “bullying”.
Feet up on the desk time our public service friends.
Nothing can be done now.

UC have posted this to YouTube which should be of interest to our many readers in the Public Service:
Gary Gray AO MP, Special Minister of State and Minister for the Public Service and Integrity, spoke on the future direction of the Australian Public Service (APS) in this public lecture as part of the ‘Canberra Conversation’ [...]

Senator Humphries is making a point of the Government’s reductions to the public service:
The Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday released figures that show public service job vacancies in Canberra have slumped to their lowest levels in 15 years.
“The ABS has belled the cat – Labor can’t continue denying that jobs are going from Canberra”, Senator [...]

The National Times has word of further major cuts to the Public Service with Penny Wong wanting another $550 million in savings over four years on top of the swingeing 4% efficiency dividend.
She has some piddling ideas as to where savings can be made:
– Almost $30 million a year through across-the-board reductions in air-travel spending, [...]

The Financial Review has the very bad news for the public service here in Canberra that a newer and bigger efficiency dividend is going to be imposed:
Cabinet ministers have been told the expenditure review committee of cabinet will impose a further “efficiency dividend” on the federal bureaucracy, in addition to the on-going 1.5 per cent [...]

The ABC has the sad news that the Comcare is now liable for the emotional fallout of office romances after firebomber Colin Dunstan had a win in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Dunstan has fought a long battle for compensation, claiming he was harassed by a colleague with whom he had had an affair .
This week [...]

The Financial Review has a story on Federal Coalition finance and deregulation spokesman Andrew Robb and his big bold idea of cutting the Public Service here in Canberra by outsourcing the work to State bureaucracies.
The Coalition plans to “outsource” administration of a vast swath of federal policy – including health and education – to [...]