Senior executives, contractors, temporary employees expected to be face dismissal
Service NSW will reportedly lay off an undisclosed number of employees amid "unsustainable" staffing levels.
News.com.au reported on Monday that the government plans to implement a "revised organisation structure" for the agency that has about 4,590 employees, almost double than its pre-pandemic headcount.
"This is not sustainable," a spokesperson for Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Jihad Dib told the news outlet.
The number of employees that will be impacted hasn’t been disclosed, but the spokesperson shared that affected staff will include contractors and temporary employees and staff who were brought in to help with COVID-19 stimulus programmes.
"The reduction in staff will include senior executives … final numbers will be determined in consultation with staff and unions," the spokesperson added.
The spokesperson also confirmed that no Service NSW customer service employees will be laid off.
"There will be a focus on maintaining existing face-to-face customer services, while the Service NSW app is also being uplifted as part of the NSW Government's investment in the Digital ID programme," the spokesperson said.
According to news.com.au, the layoffs in Service NSW is just the first public sector agency to suffer from layoffs as the government seeks to reduce its staffing numbers.
The NSW government, which is Australia's largest employer, has a headcount of 453,210 as of 2023, reported the news outlet.
It follows the 4.7% increase in full-time roles in the public sector last year, where 17,265 individuals were employed in just 12 months.
