Memo Macquarie Street: What does "Back Office" really mean?

13 February 2006

The Public Service Association today called on the NSW Opposition leader Peter Debnam and NSW Finance Minister Michael Costa to clarify what they mean by "back office" public sector workers.

In recent days Mr Debnam and Mr Costa have been flagging they will cut thousands of "back office" workers, implying that the cuts will have no impact on public service delivery.

PSA general secretary John Cahill called on the politicians to specify whether they regarded any or all of the following as "back room" for the purposes of job cuts:

• teachers aides providing administrative support in schools
• workers providing administrative support to our police officers and nurses, ensuring they spend their time serving the public.
• customer service and processing workers in agencies like RTA
• community workers delivering and planning for the care of the aged and disabled
• workers monitoring environmental standards and ensuring companies are not polluting our environment.
• workers providing advise and support to rural and regional NSW, including ensuring disease controls are in place
• workers ensuring the proper reporting and monitoring of children at risk.

Mr Cahill said that it was easy to make scapegoats of public servants, but that it was vital the impact of cuts is not being properly explained to the community.

"The reality is that these so-called back-room workers are either serving the public directly or providing vital administrative support to those on the frontline," Mr Cahill said.

"The clear message our members want to send the public is that, after decades of cuts, it is now impossible to cut jobs further without compromising services."

Contact Details
John Cahill, General Secretary
Ph:  02 9220 0982
Fax: 02 9262 1623
psa@psa.asn.au

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