Australian Public Service Commission reveals its bargaining position ahead of APS-wide pay talks

The commission, agencies and unions will try to agree on an APS-wide pay rise and improved conditions for the next three years by July 31, before the expiry of an interim arrangement.

Under that arrangement, due to expire at the end of August, eligible public servants receive a 3 per cent annual pay increase.

While the Community and Public Sector Union has called for a 9 per cent salary increase in the first year of the agreement, the commission will not present its own offer until after the federal budget on May 9.

The Australian Public Service Commission on Tuesday published more details of its bargaining position, setting out its touchstones for reestablishing the public service as an employer of choice.

Six principles will form the basis of the commission's negotiations, including becoming a model employer, unifying the Commonwealth Public Service, improving mobility, attraction and retention, administrative efficiency, fairness and equity and sustainability.

In addition to a sector-wide pay bump, talks will look to address salary discrepancies across agencies, which often negatively impact women and First Nations peoples.

For example, an entry-level employee (of APS4 rank) at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies earns at most $69,535 annually, compared to someone of the same rank at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, earning a maximum salary of $77,996.

The commission has not revealed its proposed mechanism for reducing pay fragmentation, but has said it will be a gradual process which takes place over multiple bargaining rounds.

"Noting that the current state of pay dispersion has occurred over decades, and mindful of current budget pressures, reducing wage dispersion will likely be a gradual process over multiple bargaining rounds," the Public Sector Workplace Relations Policy 2023 states.

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The CPSU has pitched that salaries of the lowest-paid employees should be lifted immediately.

Recognising its struggle to compete with the private sector for talent, the government wants to make it easier for public servants to move between agencies.

Mobility between the public service and other Commonwealth agencies, such as the Australian Federal Police, should also be improved.

"Entry into Commonwealth employment is entry into a network of potential career pathways, rather than into a single organisation or job role," its policy states.

The government has also noted flexible work as a key part of discussions, following the main public sector union's position to remove caps on the number of days an employee can work from home.

Deputy Commissioner for the Workplace Relations Bargaining Taskforce Peter Riordan will lead sector-wide bargaining on behalf of all public sector agencies.

Earlier in March, the commission published its proposed common conditions across agencies.

At the conclusion of talks with unions and representatives, the government will publish a Statement of Common Conditions which identifies what has been agreed to, as well as conditions that will be held over for the next round of bargaining.

Following these negotiations, individual agencies will be able to bargain on issues unique to their operations, such as professional development programs, specialised hours of work or allowances for professional memberships, tools or uniforms.

Agencies cannot use this round of talks to seek an additional pay rise for a cohort of employees.

Formal negotiations will begin on March 30.

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