Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”
Dear Commonwealth Ombudsman,
I’ve come across another interesting contract notice on the AusTender website.
The contract notice number is CN3754388. The description for the contract is “Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”. The supplier of the services is Capital Recruit Operating Account. The value of the contract is $156,000. The contract period is 11 February 2021 to 30 October 2021.
I find the notice interesting because a contractor has been brought on to work at the OCO as the “equivalent” of an Executive Level 1 employee for about 8.5 months, at a cost of $156,000. It’s not clear to me if the person brought on is, strictly speaking, a contractor, or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person to be temporarily recruited as a public servant or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person in another agency with a view to the Ombudsman ‘poaching’ that APS employee with a contract made under s 26 of the Public Service Act.
I’m sure a lot of that can be cleared up if the following documents are made available to me:
a) the written document (or documents) setting out the contract associated with CN3754388, so that I can determine what services were provided by the supplier;
b) any purchase orders associated with CN3754388;
c) any invoices issued by the supplier with respect to CN3754388;
d) any and all documents setting out the scope of the role of this contractor (including what duties they had to perform, performance indicators etc.);
e) the APS role evaluation summary record (the template of this summary record can be found on pages 3 – 5 of the “Australian Public Service Role evaluation tool”, which is available for download at www.apsc.gov.au/working-aps/aps-employee... for the “equivalent” Executive Level 1 Assistant Director role that was the comparative basis of the contractor’s role; and
f) to the extent that it is not covered by (d) and (e), any and all documents setting out the ‘research’ (e.g. interviews with other staff, analysis of similar roles in other agencies, analysis of going market rates in relation to the work to be performed by the contractor etc.) undertaken by OCO staff to determine the proper scope of the role of the contractor.
Accordingly, I make a request for the documents identified at a – f under the FOI Act.
Cynthia
Ombudsman reference: FOI-2022-10022
Dear Cynthia
I acknowledge receipt of your email below dated 29 January 2022 in which you have requested access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
Information you may not be seeking to access
The documents you have requested contain the personal information of third parties (including full names and direct contact details). We seek your agreement to exclude this information from the scope of your FOI request. This may help us to process your request more quickly.
Duplicates
There may be multiple copies of identical documents within our records which fall within the scope of your request. I intend to only consider and make a decision on one copy of each identical document.
Timeframes
You should expect a decision from us within 30 days from the date we received your FOI request. This 30 day period may be extended if we need to consult third parties, impose a charge (a fee for processing your request) or for other reasons. We will let you know if this happens.
Contacts
If you have any questions about this matter, you may contact me by email to [email address] or by phone to 1300 362 072.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Christie
[she/her]
Paralegal | Legal Team
Commonwealth Ombudsman
Ph: 1300 362 072 | Fax: 02 6276 0123
Email: [CO request email]
Influencing systemic improvement in public administration
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
-----Original Message-----
From: Cynthia T <[FOI #8345 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 29 January 2022 8:17 PM
To: FOI requests at CO <[CO request email]>
Subject: [External] Freedom of Information request - Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”
Dear Commonwealth Ombudsman,
I’ve come across another interesting contract notice on the AusTender website.
The contract notice number is CN3754388. The description for the contract is “Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”. The supplier of the services is Capital Recruit Operating Account. The value of the contract is $156,000. The contract period is 11 February 2021 to 30 October 2021.
I find the notice interesting because a contractor has been brought on to work at the OCO as the “equivalent” of an Executive Level 1 employee for about 8.5 months, at a cost of $156,000. It’s not clear to me if the person brought on is, strictly speaking, a contractor, or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person to be temporarily recruited as a public servant or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person in another agency with a view to the Ombudsman ‘poaching’ that APS employee with a contract made under s 26 of the Public Service Act.
I’m sure a lot of that can be cleared up if the following documents are made available to me:
a) the written document (or documents) setting out the contract associated with CN3754388, so that I can determine what services were provided by the supplier;
b) any purchase orders associated with CN3754388;
c) any invoices issued by the supplier with respect to CN3754388;
d) any and all documents setting out the scope of the role of this contractor (including what duties they had to perform, performance indicators etc.);
e) the APS role evaluation summary record (the template of this summary record can be found on pages 3 – 5 of the “Australian Public Service Role evaluation tool”, which is available for download at https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...) for the “equivalent” Executive Level 1 Assistant Director role that was the comparative basis of the contractor’s role; and
f) to the extent that it is not covered by (d) and (e), any and all documents setting out the ‘research’ (e.g. interviews with other staff, analysis of similar roles in other agencies, analysis of going market rates in relation to the work to be performed by the contractor etc.) undertaken by OCO staff to determine the proper scope of the role of the contractor.
Accordingly, I make a request for the documents identified at a – f under the FOI Act.
Cynthia
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #8345 email]
Is [CO request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Commonwealth Ombudsman? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMONWEALTH OMBUDSMAN - IMPORTANT CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE
This e-mail message or an attachment to it is confidential, and it is intended to be accessed only by the person or entity to which it is addressed.
No use, copying or disclosure (including by further transmission) of this message, an attachment or the content of either is permitted and any use, copying or disclosure may be subject to legal sanctions. This message may contain information which is:
* about an identifiable individual;
* subject to client legal privilege or other privilege; or
* subject to a statutory or other requirement of confidentiality.
If you have received this message in error, please call 1300 362 072 to inform the sender so that future errors can be avoided.
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Ombudsman reference: FOI-2022-10022
Dear Cynthia
I refer to your Freedom of Information request below.
Your request includes documents which contain information concerning an organisation’s business or professional affairs. I have decided to consult this organisation under s 27 of the FOI Act before making a decision on the release of the documents.
For this reason, the period for processing your request has been extended by 30 days to allow time to consult (see s 15(6) of the FOI Act). The processing period for your request will now end on 30 March 2022.
The consultation mechanisms under ss 27 applies when we believe the organisation concerned may wish to contend that the requested documents are exempt for as disclosure may adversely affect their business or financial affairs. We will take into account any comments we receive but the final decision about whether to grant you access to the documents you requested rests with the Office.
If you have any questions, you may contact me via email at [email address] or via telephone on 1300 362 072.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Christie
[she/her]
Paralegal | Legal Team
Commonwealth Ombudsman
Ph: 1300 362 072 | Fax: 02 6276 0123
Email: [CO request email]
Influencing systemic improvement in public administration
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
-----Original Message-----
From: Cynthia T <[FOI #8345 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 29 January 2022 8:17 PM
To: FOI requests at CO <[CO request email]>
Subject: [External] Freedom of Information request - Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”
Dear Commonwealth Ombudsman,
I’ve come across another interesting contract notice on the AusTender website.
The contract notice number is CN3754388. The description for the contract is “Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”. The supplier of the services is Capital Recruit Operating Account. The value of the contract is $156,000. The contract period is 11 February 2021 to 30 October 2021.
I find the notice interesting because a contractor has been brought on to work at the OCO as the “equivalent” of an Executive Level 1 employee for about 8.5 months, at a cost of $156,000. It’s not clear to me if the person brought on is, strictly speaking, a contractor, or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person to be temporarily recruited as a public servant or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person in another agency with a view to the Ombudsman ‘poaching’ that APS employee with a contract made under s 26 of the Public Service Act.
I’m sure a lot of that can be cleared up if the following documents are made available to me:
a) the written document (or documents) setting out the contract associated with CN3754388, so that I can determine what services were provided by the supplier;
b) any purchase orders associated with CN3754388;
c) any invoices issued by the supplier with respect to CN3754388;
d) any and all documents setting out the scope of the role of this contractor (including what duties they had to perform, performance indicators etc.);
e) the APS role evaluation summary record (the template of this summary record can be found on pages 3 – 5 of the “Australian Public Service Role evaluation tool”, which is available for download at https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...) for the “equivalent” Executive Level 1 Assistant Director role that was the comparative basis of the contractor’s role; and
f) to the extent that it is not covered by (d) and (e), any and all documents setting out the ‘research’ (e.g. interviews with other staff, analysis of similar roles in other agencies, analysis of going market rates in relation to the work to be performed by the contractor etc.) undertaken by OCO staff to determine the proper scope of the role of the contractor.
Accordingly, I make a request for the documents identified at a – f under the FOI Act.
Cynthia
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #8345 email]
Is [CO request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Commonwealth Ombudsman? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMONWEALTH OMBUDSMAN - IMPORTANT CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE
This e-mail message or an attachment to it is confidential, and it is intended to be accessed only by the person or entity to which it is addressed.
No use, copying or disclosure (including by further transmission) of this message, an attachment or the content of either is permitted and any use, copying or disclosure may be subject to legal sanctions. This message may contain information which is:
* about an identifiable individual;
* subject to client legal privilege or other privilege; or
* subject to a statutory or other requirement of confidentiality.
If you have received this message in error, please call 1300 362 072 to inform the sender so that future errors can be avoided.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
OFFICIAL
Ombudsman reference: FOI-2022-10022
Dear Cynthia
Please find attached to this email my decision notice and the documents released under my decision in response to your Freedom of Information request below.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Christie
[she/her]
Paralegal | Legal Team
Commonwealth Ombudsman
Ph: 1300 362 072 | Fax: 02 6276 0123
Email: [CO request email]
Influencing systemic improvement in public administration
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
-----Original Message-----
From: Cynthia T <[FOI #8345 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 29 January 2022 8:17 PM
To: FOI requests at CO <[CO request email]>
Subject: [External] Freedom of Information request - Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”
Dear Commonwealth Ombudsman,
I’ve come across another interesting contract notice on the AusTender website.
The contract notice number is CN3754388. The description for the contract is “Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”. The supplier of the services is Capital Recruit Operating Account. The value of the contract is $156,000. The contract period is 11 February 2021 to 30 October 2021.
I find the notice interesting because a contractor has been brought on to work at the OCO as the “equivalent” of an Executive Level 1 employee for about 8.5 months, at a cost of $156,000. It’s not clear to me if the person brought on is, strictly speaking, a contractor, or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person to be temporarily recruited as a public servant or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person in another agency with a view to the Ombudsman ‘poaching’ that APS employee with a contract made under s 26 of the Public Service Act.
I’m sure a lot of that can be cleared up if the following documents are made available to me:
a) the written document (or documents) setting out the contract associated with CN3754388, so that I can determine what services were provided by the supplier;
b) any purchase orders associated with CN3754388;
c) any invoices issued by the supplier with respect to CN3754388;
d) any and all documents setting out the scope of the role of this contractor (including what duties they had to perform, performance indicators etc.);
e) the APS role evaluation summary record (the template of this summary record can be found on pages 3 – 5 of the “Australian Public Service Role evaluation tool”, which is available for download at https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...) for the “equivalent” Executive Level 1 Assistant Director role that was the comparative basis of the contractor’s role; and
f) to the extent that it is not covered by (d) and (e), any and all documents setting out the ‘research’ (e.g. interviews with other staff, analysis of similar roles in other agencies, analysis of going market rates in relation to the work to be performed by the contractor etc.) undertaken by OCO staff to determine the proper scope of the role of the contractor.
Accordingly, I make a request for the documents identified at a – f under the FOI Act.
Cynthia
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #8345 email]
Is [CO request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Commonwealth Ombudsman? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMONWEALTH OMBUDSMAN - IMPORTANT CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE
This e-mail message or an attachment to it is confidential, and it is intended to be accessed only by the person or entity to which it is addressed.
No use, copying or disclosure (including by further transmission) of this message, an attachment or the content of either is permitted and any use, copying or disclosure may be subject to legal sanctions. This message may contain information which is:
* about an identifiable individual;
* subject to client legal privilege or other privilege; or
* subject to a statutory or other requirement of confidentiality.
If you have received this message in error, please call 1300 362 072 to inform the sender so that future errors can be avoided.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
OFFICIAL
Dear Cynthia,
I refer to my email below providing my decision on your Freedom of Information request dated 29 January 2022.
Unfortunately, my letter did not include information about your rights under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 to make a complaint or seek review of my decision. I apologise for this error.
Please find this information attached.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Christie
-----Original Message-----
From: Information Access
Sent: Thursday, 31 March 2022 3:02 PM
To: Cynthia T <[FOI #8345 email]>
Subject: RE: [External] Freedom of Information request - Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director” [SEC=OFFICIAL]
OFFICIAL
Ombudsman reference: FOI-2022-10022
Dear Cynthia
Please find attached to this email my decision notice and the documents released under my decision in response to your Freedom of Information request below.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Christie
[she/her]
Paralegal | Legal Team
Commonwealth Ombudsman
Ph: 1300 362 072 | Fax: 02 6276 0123
Email: [CO request email]
Influencing systemic improvement in public administration
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
-----Original Message-----
From: Cynthia T <[FOI #8345 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 29 January 2022 8:17 PM
To: FOI requests at CO <[CO request email]>
Subject: [External] Freedom of Information request - Recruitment of "Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”
Dear Commonwealth Ombudsman,
I’ve come across another interesting contract notice on the AusTender website.
The contract notice number is CN3754388. The description for the contract is “Contractor EL1 equivalent in the role of Assistant Director”. The supplier of the services is Capital Recruit Operating Account. The value of the contract is $156,000. The contract period is 11 February 2021 to 30 October 2021.
I find the notice interesting because a contractor has been brought on to work at the OCO as the “equivalent” of an Executive Level 1 employee for about 8.5 months, at a cost of $156,000. It’s not clear to me if the person brought on is, strictly speaking, a contractor, or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person to be temporarily recruited as a public servant or whether a contract has been entered into with the supplier to get the supplier to find a person in another agency with a view to the Ombudsman ‘poaching’ that APS employee with a contract made under s 26 of the Public Service Act.
I’m sure a lot of that can be cleared up if the following documents are made available to me:
a) the written document (or documents) setting out the contract associated with CN3754388, so that I can determine what services were provided by the supplier;
b) any purchase orders associated with CN3754388;
c) any invoices issued by the supplier with respect to CN3754388;
d) any and all documents setting out the scope of the role of this contractor (including what duties they had to perform, performance indicators etc.);
e) the APS role evaluation summary record (the template of this summary record can be found on pages 3 – 5 of the “Australian Public Service Role evaluation tool”, which is available for download at https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...) for the “equivalent” Executive Level 1 Assistant Director role that was the comparative basis of the contractor’s role; and
f) to the extent that it is not covered by (d) and (e), any and all documents setting out the ‘research’ (e.g. interviews with other staff, analysis of similar roles in other agencies, analysis of going market rates in relation to the work to be performed by the contractor etc.) undertaken by OCO staff to determine the proper scope of the role of the contractor.
Accordingly, I make a request for the documents identified at a – f under the FOI Act.
Cynthia
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #8345 email]
Is [CO request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Commonwealth Ombudsman? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organisation. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMONWEALTH OMBUDSMAN - IMPORTANT CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE
This e-mail message or an attachment to it is confidential, and it is intended to be accessed only by the person or entity to which it is addressed.
No use, copying or disclosure (including by further transmission) of this message, an attachment or the content of either is permitted and any use, copying or disclosure may be subject to legal sanctions. This message may contain information which is:
* about an identifiable individual;
* subject to client legal privilege or other privilege; or
* subject to a statutory or other requirement of confidentiality.
If you have received this message in error, please call 1300 362 072 to inform the sender so that future errors can be avoided.
---------------------------------------------------------------------