Non-APS Contractors, position titles
Dear Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development,
I seek the following under FOI;
A document that contains a list of all the position/job titles of every non-APS contractor working within your department.
e.g. a position title may be: 'security guard', or 'consultant', or 'APS3 FOI officer', etc.
You may omit repeating a position title when there exist multiple contractors who have that position title. Additionally, if it would not be too onerous, please indicate the number of contractors that hold each position title.
If no such document exists please produce a document containing the information under s17.
Yours faithfully,
John Smith
OFFICIAL
Dear Mr Smith,
Thank you for your correspondence received on 1 August 2020, requesting access to documents in the possession of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications (the department) in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
I confirm receipt of your request and note the department may be in contact with you to discuss your request, if clarification is required, where we may be able to process your request outside of the FOI Act or for any other reason.
Otherwise you will be notified of any charges payable in relation to your request or of a decision regarding your FOI request as soon as this has been determined. In accordance with subparagraph 15(5)(b) you can expect to hear from the department regarding this matter within 30 days. The current due date for decision of your request is 30 August 2020.
Your name, telephone number, email or postal address, and any information about yourself provided in connection with your FOI request is considered to be personal information. As indicated above, personal information is used to contact you in relation to your request and is also used for administrative purposes involved in the processing of your request. Information on FOI requests received by the department is disclosed to Portfolio Ministers. If you do not consent to your information (typically only your name) being disclosed, please advise the department at your earliest opportunity. The department’s privacy policy contains information regarding complaint handling processes and how to access and/or seek correction of personal information held by the department.
If you have any questions regarding the processing of your request, please phone (02) 6274 6495 or email [email address].
To assist the department in responding to your future communication on this request, please quote the FOI tracking number located in the subject line.
Best regards
FOI Coordinator
Governance, Parliamentary and Integrity Branch | Corporate Services Division
Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications
GPO Box 594, Canberra ACT 2601
e [email address]
The department proudly acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Australia, and their continuing connections to the land, waters and communities. We pay our respects to them and to their Elders past, present and emerging.
OFFICIAL
OFFICIAL
Dear Mr Smith,
I refer to your request below seeking access to "a document that contains the list of all the position/job titles of every non-APS contractor working within your department".
Please find attached signed decision letter and schedule containing a breakdown of labour hire positions, by position title, released to you under FOI.
Best regards
FOI Coordinator
Governance, Parliamentary and Integrity Branch | Corporate Services Division
Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications
GPO Box 594, Canberra ACT 2601
e [email address]
The department proudly acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Australia, and their continuing connections to the land, waters and communities. We pay our respects to them and to their Elders past, present and emerging.
OFFICIAL
Dear FOI,
Thank you so much. This is greatly appreciated. The work the FOI team has done putting this together is commendable. Yours is the most transparent department I have encountered so far.
I would like to make a follow-up request to obtain the same document, but with the equivalent APS classifications for non-contractor employees listed.
For example, next to 'Administration officer' please list 'APS3' or 'APS4' next to the position title, if the equivalent APS position would be of that classification.
The reason for my request is to try and figure out what types of APS classification roles are being outsourced, and their seniority.
Yours sincerely,
John Smith
OFFICIAL
Dear Mr Smith,
Thank you for your follow-up request.
Please find attached updated breakdown of the positions. We have provided an approximate APS-equivalent classification for the identified labour hire positions (where an equivalent was available).
When considering this information, please note: Labour hires generally address the need for specialist skills that are not held in-house, or that provide additional temporary or project-specific support to APS staff. As such, labour hires are usually engaged as temporary non-APS contractors on an hourly rate that is equivalent to their skillset as based on industry standards.
Best regards
FOI Coordinator
Governance, Parliamentary and Integrity Branch | Corporate Services Division Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications GPO Box 594, Canberra ACT 2601 e [email address]
The department proudly acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of Australia, and their continuing connections to the land, waters and communities. We pay our respects to them and to their Elders past, present and emerging.
OFFICIAL
Dear FOI,
Thank you team. This is greatly appreciated.
Yes I understand that labour hire staff are ostensibly used to address short-term needs, or missing skills. However, in practice as I'm sure you're aware; 'short-term' labour hire employees often are employed for multiple years at many departments.
Unfortunately on my end there is no way for me to verify how truly 'short-term' these roles are without making a further FOI request; but that would probably violate the privacy of the employees in question.
Regardless, I greatly appreciate the position breakdowns you have provided within this document. They provide a great deal of clarity as to the seniority in roles being outsourced by the APS.
Yours sincerely,
John Smith