Jenny Gale, Head of the State Service, message to all staff

Easter message (08 Apr 2020)

To: All Tasmanian State Servants

Dear colleagues

Easter message

I know this Easter will be unlike any we’ve experienced. It will not feature the usual time with family and friends that most of us look forward to and we won’t be travelling to our shacks, going to our favourite camping spot, holidaying interstate, or exploring Tasmania’s national parks. However for many, it will provide time for a much needed break and I hope you take the opportunity to do something, at home, that brings happiness and enables you to recharge.

For many State Servants Easter will be spent ensuring essential services are available to the community. I want to thank those employees who are working in roles to support the State’s response to COVID-19 as well as those who continue doing important business as usual work in what I know are extraordinary times.

Through the Easter break, it will be important to continue to be vigilant with your personal hygiene measures. Wash your hands thoroughly and often, cover coughs and sneezes and wherever possible, ensure you’re observing physical distancing. Unless you need to go out quickly for something essential: to go to work, to buy food, to exercise or to help someone vulnerable, stay home and keep yourself and your family safe.

The Premier wrote to all Tasmanians today regarding COVID-19, and his message is attached to this email for your information. The Deputy Premier and Minister for Mental Health and Well Being also today launched the Stay Healthy and Stay Connected campaign which will provide an online community in which Tasmanians can support one another during COVID-19. Joining the online community is as simple as liking the Stay Healthy, Stay Connected Facebook Page through which tips and resources will be shared to support you to look after your own physical and mental health, along with that of friends and family.

I would like to acknowledge the work being undertaken by each Department to support their workforce and the Tasmanian community in the current environment. It is important you stay abreast of communications from within your own Department as these will provide important agency-specific details.

I couldn’t be prouder of the way Tasmanian State Servants are pitching in to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. I know people are working in roles they don’t normally fill, working long hours, learning new skills, and together we are ensuring our essential services keep going; it truly is a whole of service response. My heartfelt thanks go to each and every one of you.

Best wishes, and stay safe

Jenny Gale Signature block
Jenny Gale
Head of the State Service
Secretary, Department of Premier and Cabinet
08 Apr 2020