Foreword

Jenny Gale
Head of the State Service

In preparing this Report, it has been a great opportunity to reflect on the past 12 months to truly recognise the hard work and progress that we make, which often gets lost amongst the busyness of each day.

Agreement negotiations have been a focus over the past 12 months. I am pleased to say, that the negotiations for 21 Agreements across the State Service resulted in all Agreements having been registered at the time of tabling this Report. Negotiations on the next round of Agreements are well underway.

Diversity and inclusion continues to be a major priority for the Tasmanian State Service and I am very pleased that our commitment to reach 40% of the senior leadership in the State Service being women by 2020, has been surpassed ahead of schedule, with 43.33% of SES positions held by women as at 30 June 2019.

Achieving a diverse and inclusive workforce is more than just numbers. That’s why I, along with my fellow heads of Departments, committed in March 2019 to continue to work towards a more gender diverse and inclusive workplace.

Initiatives supporting young Tasmanians to work in the State Service not only provided further diversity, they also provided career pathways. The School to Work Youth Employment Program has seen  14 students in regional areas working towards gaining nationally recognised qualifications through a mixture of study and paid work experience. We also welcomed another 41 university graduates into our Graduate Development program (TasGRAD), bringing the total number of graduates to be inducted into the program to 99 since it commenced in 2017.

Our Aboriginal Employment Strategy was launched in June 2019, confirming our commitment to a number of initiatives to support Aboriginal employees in the State Service. The Strategy is supported by a 12 month Action Plan that sets out how we will increase the proportion of Aboriginal people we employ from  3% to 3.5%.

This year employees and officers again had the opportunity to share their perceptions of what it’s like to work in the State Service through the Employee Survey, and it has provided us with a valuable opportunity to better understand our workforce. The Survey highlighted the commitment of our employees to serving and making a positive difference to the Tasmanian community.

This commitment to the community cannot be undervalued, and I thank all employees across the State Service for their ongoing hard work and loyalty.

To continue to serve the Tasmanian community it is important to invest in our people, to have the right skills and capabilities. A number of whole-of-service programs have been developed over recent years to support our workforce and it was pleasing to see the Manager Essentials Program recognised in the annual Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) Awards.

The focus for the next 12 months is on improvement and reform, with the first major review of the Tasmanian State Service in almost 20 years being a priority. The State Service needs an operating environment that supports a contemporary and effective public service and to enable it to better meet the needs of the community. The review presents an opportunity to identify structural, legislative and administrative improvements that will transform current structures, practices and, most importantly, services to the Tasmanian people.

Negotiating and implementing wage-related Agreements, along with the continuing work to support agencies to deliver outcomes in the areas of reducing bullying and harassment, further embedding diversity and inclusion, building a culture of learning, and supporting work health and safety will also continue to be priorities for the coming year.

The role of the Head of the State Service is broad covering everything from recruitment to learning and development, work health and safety, diversity and inclusion, workforce planning and negotiating the employment conditions that make the Tasmanian State Service an attractive place to work now, and in the future.

I am supported in these tasks by the highly capable and committed people in the State Service Management Office (SSMO). I particularly acknowledge the work of Frank Ogle, the previous Director, SSMO, who retired in January 2019 after 30 years in the State Service. A passionate and dedicated State Servant, Frank played a pivotal role in whole-of-government reforms, and was a strong, positive voice and leader in our changes in diversity, inclusion and development.

Jenny Gale
Head of the State Service

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