What will the budget mean for Canberra employment?

Now that the budget is out I have noticed my Seek feed going nuts. Is it just me? Can someone advise what going for a EL1 role in the public service in a major federal agency does for one’s career, compared to EL2 perm or contracting or private sector?

So there is a lot of growing going on but hardly the boom times of the Howard years?

If my life pattern has taught me anything, it’s that because this year I am studying IT. By next year it will be mud.

Oh well, I certainly hope not.

May be a lot of jobs about, but geez they don’t suit a lot of us.

From Bernard Keane in Crikey today:

While overall public service numbers are unchanged in the Budget (an increase of 383 out of nearly 260,000), some departments and agencies have prospered while others face serious cuts.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has done well as a consequence of the Government’s Aviation White Paper, gaining 111 staff, more than 16% of its current number, to implement a new round of safety initiatives. Kim Carr’s Department of Innovation has also expanded significantly, picking up over 300 staff to grow by 16%. Close behind is Prime Minister and Cabinet — subject to bureaucratic grumbling about micro-management and empire-building — which grew significantly this year, and will grow even more next year, picking up another 86 people or 14%. It now has 200 more people than the 500 it had at the start of the Rudd Government.

The ABS will get an extra 230 people (9%), primarily for preparations for the 2011 Census. Defence and the Defence Materiel Organisation will collectively grow by 1656 people, although that’s a mere 14% of current numbers. And despite having a $15 million “efficiency” reduction to its Budget, ASIO’s numbers will yet again expand, another 5% this time, to a round figure of 1800 — partly to help expand phone tapping by law enforcement and intelligence agencies. There’ll also be more nuclear scientists at ANSTO, and AusAID will pick up another 56 staff.

Small agencies wear the biggest hits in terms of losses. The Australian Sports Commission hasn’t prospered as a result of the government’s craven rejection of the Crawford review of sports funding. Despite the government deciding to waste more money on the junketeering leeches of the Olympic movement via taxpayer handouts for elite sport, the Sports Commission will lose over 100 people, or nearly 15% of its staff. The Australian Film, Television and Radio School will lose 20 staff, but off a base of 170; Comsuper will lose 25 (5%); the Native Title Tribunal 35 (16%).

Big agencies Centrelink and Customs will also take haircuts — Centrelink losing nearly 2000 staff (7%) and Customs 250 (4.5%).

Any government departments to avoid or target? What’s INTACT like? Centrelink seems to be advertising for contractors too, but sort of sucks if you live Northside.

Most people seem to think BAU and that government departments are ‘recruiting aggressively’.

johnboy said :

IT News reckons defence will be building more datacentres here in Canberra.

A lot of that will get chewed up with building materials, although some tradies will get some work. It’s small potatoes in the defence world, though.

Anything else? Apparently government departments gets their budgets today too so we should find out more today?

IT News reckons defence will be building more datacentres here in Canberra.

Some local defence contractors are hurting a bit, since defence was told to save $$. So some contractors not getting work in that space.