But Public Service Commissioner John Lloyd says the action in the Fair Work Commission by the Community and Public Sector Union has flopped and is claiming victory after the union's actions against ten agencies and departments were adjourned for conciliation conferences.

Despite its objections, Mr Lloyd's agency must attend the conferencesbut the commissioner says his staff will not be there in a bargaining capacity.

The CPSU wanted bargaining orders against the ten agencies which also included the Australian Taxation Office, Defence, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Department of Environment and Energy, Agriculture, the Bureau of Meteorology, IP Australia, the National Disability Insurance Agency and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency alleging they were not bargaining in good faith.

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection was also included in the action but its dispute was sent to compulsory arbitration by the Fair Work Commission last week.

The union also wanted public service minister Michaelia Cash declared a bargaining agent under the Fair Work Act, which would have forced the minister or her delegates to be present at the negotiating tables.

But the Fair Work Commission has taken the minister's participation off the table, with Mr Lloyd declaring the outcome a victory, not a compromise.

"The CPSU attempted to draw the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service into the dispute and failed," the commissioner said in a statement.

"The union agreed to the removal of the Minister as a respondent to its application.

"I am bemused that the union appears to be claiming this as advancing its position."

Mr Lloyd went on to say the union's legal moves were wasting the time of "most" of the Commonwealth's public servants who, the commissioner said, are keen to vote on proposed new agreements.

"The CPSU's time wasting moves are putting potential pay rises for tens of thousands of public servants at risk of not being received before Christmas. Public servants are tired of the union's games and delaying tactics.

"Most want to vote on new agreements and get on with the job.

"Since the federal election, 12 out of 13 agreements put to a vote have been accepted by employees.

"This includes agreements for the Australian Electoral Commission, the Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman, the Special Broadcasting Service and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.

"In total, 68 new agreements have been voted up in 64 agencies."

Another headache for the government's policy emerged last week when Tasmanian Independent Jacqui Lambie joined Labor's Doug Cameron and the Greens' Lee Rhiannon to have the government's handling of the dispute investigated by the Education and Employment References Committee, with a report due by the end of November.

But the government will not be bound by any recommendations or findings emerging from the committee process.