Circular 1996/2: Redeployment and retirement provisions

Please note: This document is for reference purposes only and is no longer considered by the APS Commission to be current. It may contain good practice advice and/or advice on the transitional arrangements between the 1922 and 1999 Public Service Acts.

The PSMPC regularly issues circulars to agencies in the Australian Public Service (APS) providing information on a range of matters.

The purpose of this circular is to advise agencies that:

the APS Redeployment and Retirement (Redundancy) Award 1987 (the R&R Award) no longer applies in the APS; and
the award provisions covering the redeployment and retirement of excess non- SES staff are contained in the Australian Public Service General Employment Conditions Award 1995 (GECA).

Background

The Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), in consultation with other agencies, undertook a review of APS award arrangements as required by section 150A of the Industrial Relations Act 1988. DIR's advice No. 26: Award Rationalisation/s.150A Industrial Relations Act of 20 December 1995 provides further information on the outcome of the review and the changes to employment conditions in the APS which have occurred as a result of GECA being made by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission on 14 December 1995.

As part of this process, the provisions of the R&R Award and elements of the Excess Staff instructions were included in GECA. Accordingly, from 14 December 1995 the R&R Award ceased to apply in the APS.

What does this mean for managing excess staff situations in the APS?

In future, action in relation to an excess staff situation will be taken in accordance with the Redeployment and Retirement Provisions (R&R provisions) of GECA. The provisions of the APS Enterprise Agreement 1995-96 and the Public Service Act 1922 as they affect the redeployment and retirement of excess staff continue to apply. The administrative instructions on excess staff also apply. However, new guidelines are being developed which will replace the administrative instructions. The administrative instructions will continue to apply until the guidelines are issued. It is anticipated that new excess staff guidelines will be distributed in February 1996.

What are the differences between the R&R provisions of GECA and the R&R Award?

DIR's advice No. 26 outlines the main elements of GECA. A summary of the changes in relation to redeployment and retirement is as follows:

The R&R provisions are contained in Clauses 11 and 12 of GECA.
The provisions:
- are in plain English;
- do not contain any discriminatory clauses in relation to age; and
- reflect current arrangements, particularly in relation to the Termination of Employment provisions of the Industrial Relations Act and the role and responsibilities of Secretaries.

Clause 11

GECA uses the term employee rather than officer. However, the coverage of the R&R provisions remain the same as under the R&R Award.
A number of provisions from the Excess Staff instructions have been included in GECA, namely:
- provision of information (11.4.3.(a)). An excess employee considering an offer of voluntary retrenchment must have access to advice on the sums of money the employee will receive, leave entitlements, superannuation options and taxation arrangements.
- service for severance pay purposes (11.4.7 to 11.4.10). Service for severance pay purposes is now defined in GECA. Paragraph 11.4.7 also allows for a break in service under certain circumstances and earlier periods of service, where the employee was deemed to have resigned on marriage under the repealed section 49 of the Public Service Act, to be recognised as service for severance pay purposes.
- transfers at level (11.5.3.). A Secretary must take all reasonable steps to transfer an excess employee to a suitable vacancy.
- consideration in isolation (11.5.4). Agencies will consider an excess employee in isolation from and not in competition with other applicants for an advertised vacancy to which an excess employee seeks transfer.
A definition of salary for severance pay purposes has been included in GECA (paragraph 11.4.11) and the Public Service Commissioner is no longer required to determine which allowances should be included as salary.

Clause 12

Provisions which only apply to 'employees who are not officers' are contained in Clause 12. These provisions reflect what was previously contained in subclauses 8(i) and 9(a) of the R&R Award.

Further guidance

As mentioned above, the PSMPC will be issuing excess staff guidelines in February 1996. These guidelines will replace the administrative instructions on excess staff.

If you have any queries about these provisions, please contact Anne Walters on (06)272 3578.

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