Page 1526 - Week 06 - Thursday, 2 July 2020
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public service roles are better suited to home-based work than others. However, the ACT public service has prioritised technology upgrades to ensure that staff are equipped for remote communication and collaboration, allowing even those public servants physically present in the office to follow the appropriate social distancing requirements.
Flexible hours and various leave arrangements have also been instrumental in maintaining productivity during this challenging period. This includes the provision of COVID-19 related leave without impacting on existing accrued leave entitlements. Flexibility around hours, including start and finish times, has also been essential. The development of a detailed policy framework has facilitated the increased uptake of flexible working arrangements amongst the ACT’s public servants, guiding managers and employees through the necessary health and safety considerations. This framework has been developed in conjunction with directorates and unions, and I thank everyone involved for their cooperation.
The ACT public service’s resourcefulness during the pandemic has not just benefited those employees who have taken advantage of flexible hours or remote work; it has also improved productivity. Whilst it is difficult to measure the pandemic’s impact across a workforce as diverse as the ACT public service, the ACT revenue office provides an interesting, quantifiable snapshot. For example, the completion of tasks in one of the revenue office’s operations teams jumped from an average of 62 per day prior to remote working, to 99 per day while working from home—an increase of 60 per cent. Another operations team experienced a 52 per cent increase in productivity from an average of 106 tasks per day, prior to flexible working arrangements, to 161 from home. The ACT revenue office has also recorded similar increases in output in its contact centre. These excellent results are due to flexible and consultative leadership and the dedication and versatility of staff, which is what we have seen right across the ACT public service.
Public servants have embraced new ways of working during the pandemic. The gradual rollback of restrictions will not mark the end of flexible work; rather, the ACT public service will continue to build upon the progress made and the lessons learnt now and into the future. It is understood and fully recognised that many Canberrans cannot work from home. These include essential service delivery workers who have continued to provide outstanding healthcare and other essential services during this difficult and uncertain period.
However, an important part of the ACT’s response to the pandemic has been encouraging those individuals who can work from home, where it suits them and it suits their employer to do just that. I want to thank Mr Gupta for highlighting the commendable work that is happening in so many workplaces across Canberra, including the ACT public service, but not only in the ACT public service. There are many lessons that we have learned during this period and many things that we might wish to retain as part of our life into the future. Some, I am sure, we will be happy to see the end of, but there are others where we have shown our resilience and our adaptability during this time. I thank Mr Gupta for bringing this motion before the Assembly, and commend it to you all.
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