The Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) has revealed the results of its Australian Public Service (APS) bargaining staff survey, which revealed that pay and pay scales came in as the most popular issue to most PS staff members.
Releasing the results, the Commission said over 49,000 staff had their say on APS bargaining, representing nearly 30 per cent of the APS.
It said the APS-wide survey was undertaken in January to obtain employees’ views and priorities for service‑wide bargaining.
“The survey asked staff what employment conditions matter the most to them, and what conditions they think should be standard across the APS,” the APSC said.
“Participants could select up to five options for question one and question two,” it said.
“Given the complexity and significant fragmentation in common terms and conditions across the APS it was important to seek to prioritise what employees considered the most important for first round of APS bargaining,” it said.
The APSC said pay and pay scales (19 per cent), workplace flexibility (17 per cent) and leave entitlements (13 per cent) mattered most to APS staff.
However, it said APS1 staff reported hours for work as the third most important condition, whereas all other classifications indicated leave entitlements.
“Beyond pay and pay scales, workplace flexibility and leave entitlements, the next employment conditions that matters most varied by classification,” the Commission said.
It said APS2 and APS3 staff reported career progression as the next most important condition (nine per cent and 10 per cent respectively); APS4, APS5 and APS6, flex time and Time Off In Lieu (TOIL) (nine per cent, 10 per cent and 11 per cent); and EL1 and EL2, superannuation (10 per cent and 11 per cent).
“Across all classifications, pay and pay scales, workplace flexibility and leave entitlements were the conditions the highest proportion of survey participants thought should be standard,” APSC said.
“EL1 and EL2 staff indicated leave entitlements were the most important condition to standardise, whereas for APS level classifications it was pay and pay scales,” it said.
“Survey participants were able to select up to five responses to this question providing additional insight into conditions staff think should be standard beyond workplace flexibility, leave entitlements and pay and pay scales.”
The Commission said this included superannuation (nine per cent), flex time and TOIL (nine per cent), and health and wellbeing (seven per cent).
The APSC’s six-page APS bargaining staff survey results can be downloaded at this PS News link.
