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Services for Agencies
More information
The following downloads provide information about CTSC services:
The following forms are available (save to your desktop):
Redeployment arrangements
Arrangements relating to the redeployment of excess and potentially excess staff differ from agency to agency. The Public Service Commissioner has, however, developed a set of redeployment principles to provide a consistent framework for the management of excess staff across the APS.
Redeployment services for agencies
The CTSC can provide assistance and support to agencies with the management of their excess and potentially excess staff. It will work in partnership with agencies to maximise redeployment outcomes for excess and potentially excess staff, and to provide personalised and tailored support services during periods of structural change.
The CTSC can also provide advice on the implementation of the redeployment principles, and on best practice approaches to the handling of excess staff situations. For further information, please refer to the Better Practice in Managing Redeployment guide.
CTSC fees
CTSC services will be provided on a partial cost-recovery basis. The standard referral fee is $2200 (GST inclusive) per employee.
This provides access to individual case management services for up to 17 hours, career counselling, access to individual and group training (exclusive of the 17 hours case management), and other services as agreed between the CTSC and home agency.
Recruitment services for agencies
The CTSC can assist agencies by providing job-ready, experienced applicants for positions, saving agencies both the time and the expense of advertising and placement.
Career Transition advisors are able to assist by identifying staff with the critical skills and background required for vacancies and referring them to agencies within two working days for immediate assessment and ongoing placement if suitable.
There is no charge for accessing the CTSC redeployee/vacancy matching service.
How to refer a client to the CTSC
The referral process is quick and easy. There are three options— email, fax or post the appropriate referral form below.
If you have a vacant position and would like the CTSC to search its register for suitable job ready applicants, please email, fax or post the form below.
Frequently Asked Questions - For Agencies
Q: How can excess or potentially excess staff be referred to the Centre for career transition services?
A: Excess or potentially excess staff may be referred to the Centre by completing a referral form which can be found on the Commission’s website. As the Centre is run on a partial cost recovery basis, there is a referral fee of $2,200 (including GST) per employee.
Q: What types of employees are being referred to the Centre?
A: The Centre has been established to provide career transition services to affected APS 1-6 and Executive Level employees. The Centre has had referrals from a wide range of classifications (from APS1-EL2) and across a wide variety of skills sets; from specialist ICT and finance skills to more generalist administrative skills.
Q: Does the Centre accept referrals for SES employees?
A: The Centre is not set up to accept referrals for excess or potentially excess SES employees. Whilst the Centre can not assist SES employees proactively, an SES employee may forward their CV to the Centre and it can be passed on to agencies seeking to recruit excess or potentially excess staff.
Q: Does the Centre guarantee redeployment?
A: The redeployment process has four key players - the referring agency, the Centre, the affected individual and the gaining agency. Each counterpart will work collaboratively to facilitate an individual’s redeployment. Whilst the Centre will use all available resources for career transition, redeployment is not guaranteed. It is important to remember that the employment relationship remains between the individual and the agency.
Q: What measures does the Centre have in place to discourage agencies from referring underperformers?
A: The Centre’s Better Practice in Managing Redeployment publication states that “staff reductions are not a tool for solving manager’s individual staff performance problems”.
The identification of underperforming staff members should be independent to the identification of excess or potentially excess staff members. Referring underperformers for redeployment is not in the spirit of the Commission’s redeployment principles and should not be a substitute for performance management.
A mechanism that the Centre has put in place to prevent this occurrence is to have an individual’s immediate supervisor provide their details as a referee.
Q: My agency has vacancies. How can I access the Centre’s recruitment services?
A: The Centre can assist agencies by providing skilled, experienced and job ready employees to fill APS vacancies saving both the time and expense of advertising and placement. Agencies human resources areas are encouraged to consult the Centre to see if we have any potential matches for your vacancies.
The Centre is committed to referring employees to agencies within 2 business days for immediate assessment and placement if suitable. Agencies will also be notified within 2 business days if no suitable employees are registered. However, there is a constant flow of employees with diverse skills sets being referred the Centre and as such we will keep your details on file so that we can contact you if a match arises.
Agencies can access this service by completing a recruitment form which can be found on the Commissions website. There is no charge to access the Centre’s recruitment service.
Q: Is an agency obliged to fill an ongoing vacancy with an excess employee?
A: The redeployment principles state that “agencies recruiting employees should give consideration to staff seeking redeployment opportunities from other agencies”. If suitable, an excess or potentially excess employee can move from one agency to another, provided it is not a promotion. In these cases, there is no requirement for advertising or merit selection and is consistent with the provisions under section 26 of the Public Service Act 1999.
While agencies are not compelled to recruit excess employees, in the spirit of the redeployment principles and APS collaboration, we strongly encourage agencies to consider excess employees for their vacancies.
Further information
Further information can be provided by contacting the Centre:
Phone: 02 6202 3756
Fax: 02 6202 3880
Email: ctsc@apsc.gov.au
Redeployment Principles
- Individual agencies should explore redeployment options
for excess staff both internally and, if no suitable
positions are available, within the wider APS through collaborative arrangements with other agencies
- While the highest priority is on excess staff, agencies should also work with potentially excess staff to minimise the number ultimately declared excess.
- There is a shared responsibility for redeployment; staff are expected to make efforts to move to an ongoing job as quickly as possible, and agencies need to provide a high level of information and support to the affected staff.
- Agencies should not use excess staffing arrangements as an alternative to dealing with underperformance.
- The new Career Transition and Support Centre will provide tailored advice and assistance to agencies on arrangements for the referral of excess employees when internal redeployment options have been exhausted.
- Agencies with staff who are excess (or potentially
excess) will need to consider staff that require placement before
undertaking the normal requirement for external advertising
- There will be no recruitment freeze, but agencies need to give their highest priority to redeploying their staff to other higher priority areas, if there needs to be a reduction in staffing levels.
- The Career Transition and Support Centre will provide advice as required on best practice recruitment approaches that involve the consideration of excess staff.
- Agencies recruiting employees should give consideration
to staff seeking redeployment opportunities from other agencies
- The Career Transition and Support Centre will assist agencies as required with the provision of support services to excess employees and the facilitation of service-wide redeployment for centre clients.
- Agencies should also collaborate with other agencies.
- If suitable, the person can move to their new agency within four weeks (provided it is not a promotion). In these cases, there is no requirement for advertising or merit selection.
- Agency downsizing processes need to be clear and transparent,
with strong communication and consultation with employees and
their representatives
- Agencies will need to develop a communication strategy for staff.
- Agencies are encouraged to establish a key contact point early in the process to provide information and support to staff and facilitate collaboration between agencies.
- The Career Transition and Support Centre will provide advice to agencies on appropriate communication strategies as required.
- Agencies should make every effort to continue training
and skills development
- This is essential for the long term health of agencies and the APS as a whole.
- Agencies should be cautious to ensure that downsizing
does not unreasonably reduce the diversity of their workplaces
- The downsizing of particular services or programmes may have a disproportionate impact on some groups of employees that are clustered within that area.
- Where the take-up of Voluntary Retrenchment (VR) packages or rates of other separation among particular groups (such as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander employees) appears disproportionately high, agencies should ensure that this has not been driven by a perceived failure to supply them with proper support or encouragement in the workplace.
- Targeted VR packages may be offered, with a view to
retaining highly valued employees
- VR packages can exacerbate budget shortfalls and should only be considered as a last resort. While agencies may need to shed staff, natural attrition may be sufficient to achieve savings requirements, particularly if early action is taken.
- While there needs to be a fair process, this does not preclude agency heads ensuring that high performing employees are retained.
- VR processes will need to be consistent with agencies’ workplace agreements.
- Compulsory retrenchments should be avoided
- While agencies must retain the capacity to terminate an excess employee without agreement, this is very much a last resort power.
More information on the application of the redeployment principles can be obtained from the centre.
