Workforce Renewal Incentive Program (WRIP)

Overview

The Workforce Renewal Incentive Program (WRIP) is a tool that is available to assist Heads of Agencies to manage their workforce to meet business operational requirements. WRIP payments may be used to provide an incentive to encourage permanent employees to voluntarily leave their State Service employment if an opportunity is provided to:

• re-profile the position; or
• renew and/or re-profile the demographic/skill set of the occupational group; or
• enable an “Identified employee” to be assigned or transferred to those duties.

Conducting a WRIP

Heads of Agencies must only conduct a WRIP where there is a specific demonstrated need through their workforce planning, to re-profile their agency. The re-profiling, and therefore the WRIP, may be limited to a specific business unit, demographic group or set of skills.

Heads of Agencies are to report to Director, SSMO on any active WRIP.

WRIP payment approval criteria

Heads of Agencies can only approve WRIP payments for permanent employees where a business case has been completed that details:

• how the position will be re-profiled to better meet business operational requirements specifying why this cannot be reasonably achieved without providing a WRIP payment; or
• how the position will be filled by an “Identified employee”;
• the expected timeframe for filling the position to ensure that the position is filled within a period of six months from the date the previous employee ceased employment;
• details of advice that has been sought from the Office of the Director for Public Prosecutions in relation to any workers compensation or other relevant matters relating to the employee;
• that any multiple employment arrangements meets the provisions applicable to being able to offer the employee a WRIP payment;
• that the WRIP payment can be met within the agency’s existing budget; and
• any cost saving that will be achieved.

Employees must not be provided with a formal offer of a WRIP payment unless the business case has been approved by the Head of Agency and the specified process and timeframes have been complied with.

Re-profiling means changes that cannot reasonably be achieved without providing the employee with a WRIP payment. Such changes include:

• changing working arrangements and/or the way in which duties are undertaken;
• reviewing and revising duties and/or the classification of duties;
• recruiting an employee with a new set of skills, knowledge and experience including, but not limited to, diversity groups, youth, cadets or graduates; and
• any other change in working arrangements and duties which does not meet the requirements for the provision of a TNVR payment.

Position Re-profiling and position filling

Heads of Agencies must ensure that if an employee was provided with a WRIP payment for the purpose of re-profiling the position, the position is to be re-profiled and filled within a period of six months from the date on which the employee ceased employment.

Where an employee was provided with a WRIP payment for the purpose of filling the position with an “Identified Employee” this must occur within a period of six months from the date the employee ceased employment.

Heads of Agencies must ensure that appropriate records are maintained of the action that has been taken to re-profile and fill positions for all positions for which a WRIP payment has been made.

WRIP Payment Provisions

WRIP payments are to be based on an employee’s total continuous full-time equivalent employment, “years of service” as defined multiplied by $1 000. The minimum payment is $1 000 and the maximum payment is $30 000. WRIP payments may be negotiated outside of this arrangement provided that:

• the payment does not exceed $30 000; and
• the business case justifies:
  • the overall benefit to the agency;
  • that consistency within the agency has been applied; and
  • the discussions that have taken place with the employee in determining the final payment.

“Years of Service” means continuous full-time equivalent permanent or fixed term employment with the Crown subject to the following:

1. Permanent employment includes full-time and part-time employment.  Fixed term employment includes full-time, part-time and casual employment.
2. Any break in service of not more than three months and/or any period of leave without pay in excess of twenty working days during the period of service is not deemed to affect continuity of service however it does not count towards calculating full-time equivalent years of service.
3. Periods of secondment outside the Tasmanian State Service greater than three months in duration (except with a public sector union under the provisions of a registered award or agreement) is not deemed to affect continuity of service but does not count towards calculating full-time equivalent years of service.
4. Any periods of employment with the Crown for which a previous redundancy, termination, severance or WRIP payment has been made does not count towards calculating the employee’s continuous full-time equivalent years of service.
5. In the case of a female employee who, as a requirement under State legislation prevailing at that time, was obliged to resign her employment with the Employing Authority due to marriage or childbirth, such previous continuous service shall be counted toward calculating full-time equivalent service.  It is the responsibility of the employee to provide satisfactory evidence of their previous service.

1. The employee’s hours of work during the period of continuous employment (including any periods of paid leave, leave without pay of less than 20 working days and additional hours but excluding any payment for hours worked as overtime or leave without pay exceeding 20 working days).
2. Divided by the ordinary full-time hours of work for the same period.

• A Government department or a State authority or other organisation specified in Column 1 of Schedule 1 of the State Service Act 2000.
• The Tasmanian Police Service.
• Any member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly or Tasmanian Legislative Council.
• The Excellency the Governor.

Workers’ compensation and other employee related matters

Employees are not to be offered a WRIP payment if the employee is incapacitated due to an injury or illness and it is unlikely that the employee will be able to return to their pre-injury hours or duties. Depending on the circumstances of the incapacity such matters are to be managed in accordance with the provisions of applicable legislation such as Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988, State Service Act 2000and/or Retirement Benefits Act 1993.

A Head of Agency must arrange for advice to be obtained from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions before offering a WRIP payment to an employee if the employee:

• is incapacitated due to a workers compensation injury and it is likely that the employee will be able to return to their pre-injury hours and duties;
• has an active unresolved workers compensation injury; or
• has an outstanding work related matter that is or is likely to cause a liability issue for the Crown.

The purpose of obtaining advice from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions prior to offering a WRIP payment to the employee is to include advice in relation to:

• resolving any workers compensation and employee related matters;
• any common law action that may be taken by the employee; and
• mitigating any liability issues for the Crown.

Superannuation, taxation and financial advice

Where an employee is considering accepting a WRIP payment it is recommended that they obtain their own superannuation, financial and taxation advice. Unless otherwise agreed between the employee and the agency, employees must be provided with a minimum of 21 calendar days in which to seek appropriate advice and make a decision whether or not to accept the offer of a WRIP payment. An employee may request to extend this period where they are able to demonstrate that genuine attempts have not been successful in obtaining appropriate advice.

Agencies must not provide employees with superannuation, taxation and financial advice or provide information or comment on the suitability or effectiveness of any arrangement, scheme or provider.

Separation Timeframe

Unless otherwise agreed between the employee and the agency, a period of 14 calendar days must be allowed for the employee to separate from the agency from the date they were required to accept the offer of a WRIP payment.

Accrued Leave Entitlements

An employee who accepts a WRIP payment is entitled to receive payment for any accrued and unused recreation leave and long service to which the employee may be entitled under the provisions of the relevant award or long service leave legislation. Subject to award provisions, employees may also be entitled to leave loading. The payment of these leave entitlements do not form part of the WRIP payment.

Employment Exclusion Period

Employees who accept a WRIP payment must agree to not seek or accept any employment in any capacity or seek or accept to directly provide consultancy services to the Crown, as defined, for a period of 12 months from the date of their cessation of employment.

• any employment in any capacity with the Crown; or
• any appointment as a consultant providing consultancy services to the Crown.

• A Government department or a State authority or other organisation specified in Column 1 of Schedule 1 of the State Service Act 2000.
• The Tasmanian Police Service.
• Any member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly or Tasmanian Legislative Council.
• The Excellency the Governor.

In respect to undertaking consultancy services the following information is provided:

• The engagement of a company or organisation from the private sector to undertake consultancy or contract work for the Crown is not prohibited, even though that company or organisation may employ former State Service employees who have separated under a WRIP. This arrangement is considered to be within the provisions of the Deed of Release as it does not relate to a direct contractual relationship with the former employee and the Crown.
• The engagement would, however, be prohibited if a former State Service employee is the owner, either solely or jointly of the company or organisation or where it is considered that the former employee has entered into a business arrangement in order to circumvent the provisions of the Deed of Release for example by placing the company ownership in the control of another person.

In exceptional circumstances the Director, SSMO may provide approval to waive, reduce or vary the exclusion period where special or extraordinary circumstances exist. The Head of Agency in which the re-employment, consultancy or contract work is to be undertaken is to submit a request in writing to the Director, SSMO outlining:

• the specialist nature of the work to the undertaken;
• the reasons why it is necessary for the former employee to undertake the work;
• what action has been taken to determine if there is any cost effective alternative to the re-employment or engagement of the former employee; and
• the duration of the proposed arrangement.

A former employee who, without approval from the Director, SSMO, undertakes employment or consultancy work for the Crown prior to the expiry of the exclusion period is to have their employment be terminated and incur a penalty in accordance with the provisions of the Deed of Release. The penalty may only be waived or varied by the Director, SSMO.

Deed of Release

The offer and acceptance of a WRIP payment is not deemed to be binding until a Deed of Release “Deed” which is a legal document is signed by the employee and the Head of Agency (on behalf of the Crown) and the signatures are witnessed. The Deed of Release template is maintained and issued to agencies by the Director, SSMO. The Deed of Release must not be varied unless approved by the Director, SSMO.

In summary, the Deed specifies that the employee’s employment is terminated by reason of redundancy and sets out the terms and conditions of the agreement including the:

• amount of the WRIP payment;
• cessation of employment date; and
• employment exclusion period.

The Deed of Release does not include:

• superannuation entitlements;
• payment for any recreation and long service leave; or
• payment for leave loading - where applicable.

Processing of WRIP, leave and superannuation payments

Heads of Agencies are to ensure that arrangements are in place for employees to be paid their WRIP payment and relevant leave payments on the next available normal pay day following their cessation of employment. This provision is specified in the Deed of Release. 

The payment of superannuation benefits is a matter for the employee’s superannuation fund. Any superannuation benefits to which the employee may be entitled will be provided to the employee in accordance with applicable superannuation legislation and the requirements of their superannuation provider.

WRIP payment process and timeframes

Expressions of interest must only be sought as specified in the “Application to Conduct a WRIP”. In seeking expressions of interest, at a minimum, employees are to be:

• provided with a copy of relevant WRIP information;
• advised to seek their own superannuation, taxation and financial advice;
• advised the period in which expressions of interest are to be submitted;
• advised the process for determining if a WRIP payment can be offered to employees; and
•  advised the date on which it is expected that employees will be advised of the outcome of their expression. 

If a WRIP payment cannot be supported employees are to be advised in writing the reason for the decision and the name and contact details of who they may contact to discuss the matter.

Where a business case is approved by the Head of Agency to offer an employee a WRIP payment unless otherwise agreed between the employee and the Agency, employees are to be provided with a minimum of 21 calendar days to enable them to consider the offer and seek appropriate advice.

At a minimum, the following information is also to be provided to the employee in writing:

• WRIP payment amount (gross and net amounts);
• leave payment amounts (gross and net amounts);
• that a 12 month employment exclusion period will apply;
• that they should seek their own financial, superannuation and other any relevant advice prior to making a decision to accept or not accept the offer;
• that a WRIP payment is not regarded or treated as a redundancy;
• the date on which the employee is to advise the agency of their decision. Unless otherwise agreed between the employee and the agency, employees are to be provided with a reasonable period of time in which to seek appropriate advice and make a decision;
• a Deed of Release for the employee’s signature indicating their acceptance of the offer;
• the cessation date. Unless otherwise agreed between the employee and agency the cessation date is to be no less than 14 calendar days after the date on which the employee is to advise whether or not they are accepting a WRIP payment; and
• the name and contact details of the person the employee can contact if they have any queries regarding the offer. This person must have a thorough understanding of the WRIP.

Documentation and Provision of Information

Heads of Agencies must ensure that:

• appropriate documentation is maintained detailing the action that has been taken to re-profile and fill positions; and
• documentation is retained in accordance with legislative requirements and their agency’s approved records management system. Documentation is to be made available to the Director, SSMO for examination or review if requested. 

Crown employees must not release any information to a third party in relation to employees who have accepted a WRIP payment without the employee’s written consent unless the information:

• is required to be released by law;
• relates to an official request from another Crown agency in respect to an employment exclusion period; or
• has direct relevance to the employee undertaking the duties for which they are employed.