Victorian government to cut 1,000 public sector jobs following Silver cost-cutting report
Victorian Treasurer Jaclyn Symes has released a report into public sector jobs. (AAP Image: Joel Carrett)
In short:
The Victorian treasurer has announced more than 1,000 public service jobs will be cut as it looks to make billions of dollars in savings over the next four years.
The cuts follow the release of a report by top bureaucrat Helen Silver, who was tasked with streamlining the public service.
The government says no frontline services will be affected, saying the focus is on more than 300 senior executive and technical specialist roles.
More than 1,000 public service jobs will be slashed under a cost-cutting plan intended to save billions of dollars unveiled by the Victorian government.
Treasurer Jaclyn Symes today publicly released the final report from Helen Silver — the top bureaucrat tasked with streamlining Victoria's public sector by identifying inefficiencies and consolidating government entities — as well as her government's response.
The government said the cuts would save more than $4 billion over the next four years but would not affect frontline services.
About 330 senior executive and technical specialist roles will be cut, saving $359 million over the next four years, while reducing spending on consultants is estimated to save $113 million.
It comes as the government seeks to rein in employee costs, which have ballooned from $18.8 billion in 2014-2015 to an estimated $38 billion in 2024-2025.
Firing higher-level public service staff, known as VPS5 and VPS6, is expected to net savings of $125 million over the four-year estimates period.
Premier Jacinta Allan said the cost-saving measures would save $4 billion over the next four years. (ABC News)
The government estimates more than 1,000 public sector roles will be cut — a figure well short of the 2,000 to 3,000 jobs Ms Symes flagged when she commissioned the Silver review in February.
About 315,000 full-time equivalent staff were employed in the overall public sector as of June 2024, according to the state government, or about 10 per cent of the state's labour force.
Premier Jacinta Allan said the cuts would save a considerable amount of money.
"The actions and responses to the Silver report will deliver $4 billion in savings across the Victorian budget and these are savings that mean that we can continue to deliver those frontline services that matter most to Victorian people," she said.
"This is about looking at how we build our public sector for the future."
Ms Symes said the cutting of executive public sector roles would reshape the sector.
"What Helen did identify is that the public service is hard-working and dedicated, but has become top-heavy," she said.
"We have a situation where we have too many executives, too many in the top of the range and not enough entry-level and graduate positions.
"This is about a transformation of how the public sector will look in the future and, indeed, I very much welcome those recommendations."
The CPSU said the government had already been cutting public sector jobs based on recommendations from the Silver report. (ABC News: Simon Tucci)
Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) assistant secretary Mitch Vandewerdt-Holman said the government had already been implementing the Silver review's recommendations "by stealth".
He said 619 of the 1,055 jobs to go had already been cut.
"We've been fighting every single one of those cuts. We will continue to fight to save as many jobs as possible," he said.
The CPSU welcomed the focus on senior-executive positions being cut.
Cuts fall short of report's recommendations
The review itself, finalised and handed to the treasurer in June, recommended slashing 2,000 jobs.
In May, the treasurer also foreshadowed that cuts would focus on the state's public entities and boards, which cost $35 billion every year.
"Victoria has over 500 entities and 3,400 boards and public committees, so you can't tell me there's not some fat to cut there," Ms Symes said in her May budget speech.
Today's cuts announcement will see the number of public entities reduce by 29 — far fewer than the 78 recommended in the review.
The Silver review estimated reducing the number of public entities by 78 would save $427 million over four years. The government initially claimed it would save the same amount, despite slashing 49 fewer than recommended, but later admitted those savings would only amount to $27 million.
Under the changes, the government also says it will halve the number of business regulators by 2030.
The establishment of a new regulator called Safe Food Victoria will combine separate food safety regulators for dairy and meat.
The Victorian Legal Services Board will be merged with the Legal Admissions Board, while HealthShare Victoria and VicHealth — responsible for healthcare procurement and health promotion respectively — will be absorbed into the Department of Health.
The review made 52 recommendations. The government accepted 27 in full, three in part and 15 in principle.
Ms Symes said the government may choose to revisit some of the recommendations it had chosen not to accept.
"That is not necessarily indicating that we won't go further in the future; it's recognition that some of her recommendations will take some time," she said.
"For example, her recommendation to combine a lot of the workplace regulators is something that has merit, but right now I have a piece of legislation in the parliament that affects the labour hire authority.
"Now is not the time to merge other entities into that organisation while we're bedding down important functions."
Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said the report was an admission of failure by the government to rein in spending. (ABC News)
It rejected seven recommendations, including a proposal that the government pause building more early learning and childcare centres beyond those already operating or under construction, as well as cut funding for musical instruments in secondary schools.
The government also declined to merge the state's retail water authorities, despite recent bungles with Greater Western Water's billing system, noting "the different needs and infrastructure requirements of local communities".
Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said the Silver review was "a $4 billion admission of failure".
"Labor's mismanagement and top-heavy bureaucracy is driving Victoria deeper into debt and starving critical funds from the frontline community safety, health and housing services Victorians deserve," she said.
"This report issues a stark warning over the dire impact Victoria's soon-to-be $1 million an hour interest bill is having on our capacity to deliver frontline services now and into the future.
"These supposed savings are a drop in the ocean. Since this report was handed to Labor in June, Victoria's net debt has grown by almost twice the claimed savings Labor's cuts will deliver."