ACT directorate and agency heads handed down nearly double the amount of disciplinary sanctions to public servants in 2018-19, compared with the 2017-18 financial year.
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Of the 96 sanctions issued as a result of misconduct, 34 took the form of a written warning and admonishment, while 24 demanded some other financial penalty.
Another 16 employees resigned before a sanction was imposed; 13 were sacked, and nine were transferred to another position at their level, or a lower classification.
More than one sanction could be slapped on the same public servant as a result of their misconduct. The findings represent the highest number of sanctions issued in the ACT public service since 2013, and come as part of the government's annual State of the Service report.
Public servants lodged 368 complaints of bullying and harassment against co-workers in 2018-19, up one from the previous financial year. Multiple reports could be filed by the same person through different avenues.
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A preliminary assessment was conducted for 90 of the reports, compared with 225 in 2017-18; 18 were followed up with a misconduct process, and seven were yet to be resolved as of June 30, 2019.
"This demonstrates that many reports were either resolved within the workplace without the need for further intervention or were found during the preliminary assessment stage not to involve behaviour considered to be bullying or harassment," the report said.
In 2018-19, the Professional Standards Unit received 85 new misconduct referrals from the ACT public sector; a 16 per cent increase on the previous financial year.
In addition to the new referrals, the unit had 33 investigations in progress from 2017-18. Some 60 investigations were completed by the Public Standards Unit, and took an average of 124 business days to work through; up from 101 days the previous year, and 96 in 2016-17.
A further four cases were investigated by external services.
"[The added time it took to complete investigations] was primarily due to an increasing volume ... being of a larger scale and complexity," the report said.
"During the 2018-19 reporting year, the Professional Standards Unit reviewed their processes and expect the average time to reduce during the next reporting year."
Community and Public Sector Union regional secretary, Madeline Northam, welcomed the Professional Standards Unit's "greater scope" to self-initiate investigations.
"Thanks to the campaign of [union] members, there has been an intense focus on issues that the Professional Standards Unit deals with, such as bullying, harassment, nepotism and favouritism, which in particular has been highlighted by the Health Culture Review, but exists in other agencies," she said.
"It is not surprising that with such a focus by the [union] and the government that the number of investigations would increase."
Ms Northam noted the report discussed the outsourcing of investigations into public servants' misconduct, which was an issue of "great concern" for the union.
Money being paid to third party consultants should be redirected to the Professional Standards Unit's "bottom line", so they could continue to ensure an open and transparent public service, she said.
"The [union] believes that public service jobs should be done by public servants.
"With the Integrity Commission coming online this year, [we expect] to see an increase in referrals as is always the case when new measures are put in place."
A total of eight public interest disclosures were lodged in 2018-19 but only three were investigated. Five were deemed to be out of line with legislation.
In 2017-18, one public interest disclosure was received, and not pursued.
Cassandra Morgan
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
