Secondary (outside) employment and conflict of interest

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Secondary employment (sometimes called ‘outside employment’) is any work undertaken by an APS employee outside of their primary job in the APS. This includes any paid employment, as well as business ownership, contract work outside of the APS, and any unpaid roles or volunteer work. 

Generally, employees are able to work outside of the APS if it does not conflict with their duties, but you should consult relevant policies in your own agency, particularly as they may include a requirement to seek approval of any proposed secondary employment before commencing.

Secondary employment can give rise to a real or apparent conflict of interest to the extent that it could compromise, or could reasonably be perceived to compromise, an employee’s performance of their public or official duties.

This means that any secondary employment must be declared, and any potential conflicts assessed and appropriately managed.

It is your responsibility as an APS employee to advise your manager of any proposed secondary employment, or any changes to approved secondary employment arrangements, and to inform any new manager of your secondary employment. Managers are responsible for working with employees to establish management plans as needed, and ensuring approved management plans are properly recorded and accessible in centralised recordkeeping systems.

When deciding whether secondary employment is appropriate in the context of an employee’s APS duties, managers must strike a reasonable balance between the agency’s interests and those of the employee. However, the overriding obligation is the need to maintain public confidence in the integrity of their agency and the APS, which all employees are expected to uphold at all times under the APS Code of Conduct.

For further information regarding the assessment and management of secondary employment, please consult:

NACC’s Corrupt conduct and conflicts of interest – A guide for public officials

Department of Finance RMG 208 – Managing conflicts of interest and confidentiality

Section 5: Conflict of Interest | Australian Public Service Commission

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Acknowledgement of Country

The APSC acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders both past and present.