Yesterday afternoon, your SOVBAG Delegates met with the Sheriff, as well as representatives from DCJ, regarding the frustrating delays to progressing the uplift program.

The Sheriff clarified several aspects of the “Business Case”, as well as giving an indication as to timelines and processes from here.

Regarding the Uplift Business Case:

• The Business Case is passing through various internal checks within your Division – Courts, Tribunals and Service Delivery (CTSD). It is not yet with the Secretary of DCJ, Mr. Michael Tidbull, however it will need to be reviewed at that level before any proposal progressing through Public Sector Industrial Relations and ultimately the Government. The PSA still questions why the Business Case has taken so long to progress through to Division level, and spoke about the impression that the Business Case was further advanced than it actually was increasing angst amongst the membership.
• The PSA has requested a summary of the reports underpinning the Business Case, as a result of the engagement and consultation undertaken with staff.
• The reclassification for Court Officers from Clerk General Scale to Clerk ½ is a part of the Business Case, it is not a separate action or process

Office of the Sheriff budget

DCJ clarified that any “uplift” of Sheriff Officer roles would need to be done via an Award variation.  While the previous Government’s wages policy was removed on 1 September 2023, there are still a number of requirements to fund Award changes via Employee Related Expenses, which makes the process of “uplifting” remuneration a time-consuming process.

Uplifting the wages of Court Officers from Clerical Officer General Scale to Clerk ½ does not require an Award change, however it does require the costs to be met in Budget.

When the Sheriff was asked how the money for the Senior Leadership team to be “uplifted” was found, the response was that the Uplift of the Senior Leadership was a handful of positions, at a significantly smaller cost than the rest of the Uplift.  It was therefore easier to fund the changes “in budget”.  The Sheriff also indicated that without upgrading the role to an Executive Director level, the Uplift program would not have had the necessary delegations to enable it to happen. While the PSA accepts that the uplift for the Senior Leadership team may be at a smaller cost, and easier to achieve, it is little comfort to members who are struggling through a cost-of-living crisis that it takes so long for their classification to be potentially increased.

Where to from here?

Pressure for the adequate progression of the Uplift Business Case now needs to move from the Office of the Sheriff level to the DCJ Secretary, as well as the Attorney General to ensure that the Business Case is not left in a state of bureaucratic stasis, and that the urgency of the Uplift requirement is understood.  The PSA have sought a meeting with the Attorney General to discuss the Office of the Sheriff’s budgetary pressures and seek further information on how the recently announced $3.6 billion Essential Services Fund may interact with the Business Case.  We will also make representations to the DCJ Secretary once he has received the Business Case.

DCJ have committed to write to us with some further information on timelines and approval processes, as well as providing a level of information about the reports undertaken underpinning the Business Case. A commitment was made by DCJ to keep an open line of communication in regards to the Uplift program over and above brief quarterly statements or discussions in JCC meetings.

The actions detailed in our previous bulletin (Statewide stop work meetings, Introduction of work bans, boycotting any DCJ organised 200-year celebrations) remain open to the membership to progress the Uplift program, and will be considered by your SOVBAG delegates once the communication from DCJ is received, as well as considering any progress (or lack of progress) in meeting with the Attorney General.