Workforce Management

Manage TSS employment on behalf of
the Premier as the Employer, through high-quality
policy, programs and governance arrangements.

INVESTIGATIONS

Code of Conduct

In 2019-20 there were 68 allegations of breaches of the Code of Conduct (Section 9 of the Act), being investigated in line with the provisions of Employment Direction No. 5: Procedures for the Investigation and Determination of whether an employee has breached the Code of Conduct.

Of the 44 that were finalised during the period, 39 breaches were identified and sanctions were imposed that ranged from counselling, formal reprimands, reassignment of duties, and reduction in classification, to termination of employment. The remaining cases were either resolved with no breach found, finalised through other means, or were carried forward into the 2020-21 period.

Inability

Four agencies reported investigations into alleged inability of an employee to perform their duties, in line with Employment Direction No. 6: Procedures for the Investigation and Determination of whether an employee is able to efficiently and effectively perform their duties.

A total of six cases were under investigation in 2019-20, with four finalised during the period. In all four cases the employee was found to be unable to perform their duties. The remaining two cases were carried forward into the 2020-21 period.

Terminations

Section 44(3) of the State Service Act 2000 provides a number of grounds on which an employee’s employment may be terminated. In 2019-20, a total of eight terminations were reported across three agencies, which is an increase from the four reported in 2018-19.

GRIEVANCES

Internal grievances

Employees are able to raise grievances or matters with their agency under the agency’s grievance management process. In 2019-20, a total of 178 formal grievances were reported across 10 agencies, which is an increase from 154 grievances across 12 agencies in 2018-19.

The nature of the grievances lodged included work performance issues, employee conflicts, allegations of misconduct, management decisions, and recruitment and selection process matters. Where these grievances were resolved, actions taken included mediation, counselling, additional training and addressing workplace health and safety issues. The following table shows the outcome of all formal grievances reported in 2019-20, compared to 2018-19.

The average number of formal grievances managed internally each year for the five years to 2020 was 132.

External grievances

In 2019-20, a total of 19 grievances were taken to external organisations (five to Equal Opportunity Tasmania and 14 to the Tasmanian Industrial Commission). Matters referred related to management decisions, employment conditions, discrimination and bullying and/or harassment. The average number of grievances managed externally each year for the five years to 2020 was 41.

EMPLOYMENT DETERMINATIONS

Determinations by SSMO

In 2019-20, a number of matters were referred to SSMO for determination using the powers of the Employer under the Act, in line with relevant Employment Directions (EDs)²³, and Practices, Procedures and Standards (PPSs)²⁴. The following table shows the requests made during this period and their status as at 30 June 2020.

Determinations by Heads of Agencies

Fixed-term employees who meet the provisions of Clause 13 of ED1, may apply to their Head of Agency to have duties they are performing advertised for filling on a permanent basis, in accordance with the ED.

The power of the Employer to change the employment status of a fixed-term employee to permanent under Section 37 (4) of the Act is delegated to Heads of Agencies, and exercised in accordance with the provisions of ED1.  In addition, this power extends to the Head of Agency of the Department of Education to change the employment status of eligible fixed-term teachers who meet the requirements of Employment Direction No.9: Change of Employment Status of Fixed-term Teachers to Permanent (ED9).

The following table sets out the number of determinations approved by Heads of Agencies in 2019-20.

MANAGING PERFORMANCE

Performance management systems provide a framework for regular, constructive discussions that create a link between the performance and development of employees and officers and the agency’s business requirements. In 2019-20, agencies reported approximately 11,703 employees participated in a performance management process representing 36.57% of the TSS workforce. This was a decrease from 13,305 in 2018-19 (42.34% of the TSS workforce).

Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) provide additional support to employees in meeting performance measures, by providing a structured plan that can include additional training, supervisions, role clarification, or a skills review. In 2019-20, there were 28 PIPs in place (a decrease from 36 in 2018-19) and a total of 32 were completed in the period (this includes PIPs carried forward from 2018-19).

In the 2020 Employee Survey, 70% of respondents who had a performance
management conversation, said it helped identify their work priorities,
and training and development needs.

^{23. http://www.dpac.tas.gov.au/divisions/ssmo/employment_directions}

^{24. http://www.dpac.tas.gov.au/divisions/ssmo/employment_policy/practices,_procedures_and_standards}

^{25. Currently approved fixed-term and casual employment registers can be viewed on the www.jobs.tas.gov.au website.}