COO Committee 2023 priorities
In 2023 the Committee agreed to prioritise:
- Supporting implementation of the APS reform agenda;
- Implementing the 2023 APS Workplace Relations (Bargaining Policy); and
- Driving diversity across the APS (including but not limited to agendas focused on First Nations, CALD, Gender and Disabilities).
Common operating picture of First Nations initiatives across the APS
Dr Rachel Bacon, Deputy Secretary, APS Reform Office and Mr Sam White, A/g Chief Operating Officer, National Indigenous Australians Agency led a discussion on the connection between the APS Reform Agenda and the Closing the Gap Priority Reforms. The Committee discussed its role in progressing both reform agendas, as well as a shared view of how agency-level initiatives impact whole of government outcomes.
APSC Agenda - APS Bargaining
The Committee noted an update from Mr Peter Riordan, Deputy Commissioner Workplace Relations Bargaining Taskforce, on APS Bargaining including:
- The Government is committed to ensuring the APS continues to be a model employer and a key objective of its plan for Secure Australian Jobs is to restore the ability of workers to genuinely bargain for better pay and conditions.
- The Australian Public Service Commission has established a Taskforce to develop a comprehensive workplace relations policy, with a view to undertaking genuine service-wide bargaining in the APS. A key objective of service-wide bargaining is to establish a set of common conditions that will apply across the APS, and take initial steps to reduce pay fragmentation across the service.
First Nations Employment in the Public Sector – Hackathon report
The Committee noted an update led by Ms Caroline Walsh, Chief Executive Office, Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) ACT and National Executive Director IPAA National with Carlyn Waters, Nat George and Amanda Kingston, on the Hackathon, held 14 July 2022 with the support of the APSC and the NIAA. The hackathon brought together 64 First Nation and non-First Nation participants, to develop practical and implementable ways of improving employment outcomes for First Nations working people in the public service. Recommendations from the Hackathon are detailed in the “Doing something different: 28 practical ways of improving employment outcomes for First Nations people in the public sector” report.
APSC: APS Surge Reserve enhancements update
Ms Helen Wilson, Deputy Commissioner, Workforce Policy, Integrity and Operations, APSC, advised the Committee that the APS Surge Reserve is an enduring capability of the APS to mobilise APS staff in large numbers in response to a crisis. The APS surge is a key mechanism to ramp up response efforts after nationally significant disaster events.
APS Reform update
Dr Rachel Bacon, APS Reform Office, provided an update on key activities across the APS reform agenda, including the in-house consulting model, collaboration between agencies on reform priorities, and insights from previous work to inform current agenda.
COO Committee Terms of Reference
The COO Committee Terms of Reference were endorsed by the Committee and are included at Attachment A.
Next meetings
The next COO Committee meeting is scheduled for 29 March 2023.