FACS and Justice – Machinery of Government Changes – May 2019 (PDF version)

On 22 May 2019, PSA representatives met with Mr John Hubby Deputy Secretary of Corporate Services and other FACS and Justice Senior IR/HR staff regarding Machinery of government changes.

At that meeting, the PSA was advised of the stages that are being undertaken as a result of the Machinery of Government changes that will come into effect 1 July 2019, when FACS and Justice are to be merged into a new principle department to sit within the Stronger Communities cluster.

We were advised that the first stage was the appointment of the Secretary of the Cluster, with the next stage being the appointment of Deputy Secretaries to Divisions. The stage that they are up to now is where Deputy Secretaries are finalising their Executive Structures. A copy of the Executive Structure can be viewed HERE.

In addition, the Association was advised the following:

• Each Department Secretary is currently designing their own division which is to be presented to Mr Hubby this week.
• Juvenile Justice is now Youth Justice and is folded into the FACS Service delivery component of Community Services.
• Corporate Services which includes ICT and other like services that operate across FACS and Justice will merge.
• Corrective Services NSW on a whole is unlikely to change.
• The creation of Law Reform and Legal Services.
• No proposal to make any Executive Staff excess employees.
• Any displaced Executive Staff would be placed internally first and that the Public Service Commission would be a clearinghouse for any displaced Executives who could not be placed within FACS/Justice.
• Both FACS and Justice as they currently stand have significant budget pressures.
• Justice need to find budget efficiencies within the next financial year.
• Commissioning may mean that services may be delivered by community providers/NGOs.
• There will be policy harmonisation between FACS and Justice.
• NSW Police, RFS and NSW SES are and remain under Stronger Communities.

Unfortunately, what was evident within this meeting was that there was no detail provided to the PSA on staff impact within the Executive Staff structure, no Change Management Plan to be made available prior to the development of the Executive Structures and no assurance that by merging Corporate Services that there will be no job losses.

We were further alarmed that it was clearly noted of the budget deficiencies that are required by Justice but again no detail as to how or what this means in relation to both staff and service delivery was provided.

Given the significance of the merge and the inadequate consultation, the PSA is greatly concerned with the 1 July 2019 implementation of the two Departments and as such we have taken steps in writing to the Secretary, Mr Coutts-Trotter which can be read HERE.

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