No public servant has escaped the tumultuous change and turnover that 2022 brought. New ministers, new departmental secretaries and agency bosses. Even a new monarch.
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The voting public turfed out a federal Coalition government that was seen as less sympathetic to the public sector workforce and a prime minister who told public servants to stay out of the ideas business.
In their place, Labor was handed power having promised more public service jobs and restoring faith in government.
As the year wraps up, most public servants have at last been given some time to rest and recharge - something they didn't happen over the two earlier summers. A few remain at their desks, tasked with preparing for an early Estimates block in February.
The Canberra Times looks back at the year the public service had and what to expect in the year ahead.
Disasters, Inc.
The promise of a year without lockdowns was an instant welcome relief for public servants after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, but expectations and demands on the sector remained high.
The COVID response did diminish in focus this year, thanks to the successes of the vaccination campaigning of 2021. But there was little time to celebrate, as devastating flooding from February to April meant the rapid response and payments learned through the pandemic and economic shutdown were called upon again.
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Services Australia responded to millions of pandemic and emergency claims on behalf of disaster agencies. With that kind of scale, going digital was the only way forward, which it did with new, 24/7 online channels for the public. Phone and mail alternatives were retained for those who need them. The digital service shift is now well ingrained, and there's no going back to old ways.
The words 'climate change' once risked being scrubbed in drafting of official reports, but no longer can governments ignore escalating frequency of natural disasters. The National Emergency Management Agency became the newest federal disaster agency in the latest shake-up of that role. Agencies have learned from painful experience to plan for the best and prepare for the worst.
The Election
Red and blue books were produced ahead of the May election, but caretaker conventions were seriously tested when the former prime minister's office orchestrated an "unprecedented" election day stunt that shocked officials at Home Affairs.
Officials were pressured to push out the usually secret details of attempted boat arrivals, with the staff of former minister Karen Andrews urging the department to amplify the message on election day of new boat interceptions.
Ms Andrews' office, which said it was acting on instructions from the former prime minister's office, said it required a statement be completed and published within 15 minutes, reported Home Affairs' boss Mike Pezzullo.
But Home Affairs staff acted with integrity and in line with caretaker requirements by refusing to amplify the statement through its social media accounts despite requests from ministerial staffers, he said.
With equally high integrity, the Australian Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers ran a flawless election, while also leveraging the moment to combat electoral disinformation with a high-on-humour approach on social media.
The risks that come with officials telling election-related jokes on Twitter were nothing to sneeze at, but the team struck the right balance of education and approachability, never compromising on non-partisan objectivity. The approach was an innovation highlight that is sure to be studied and copied in other agencies.
APS reform agenda
Katy Gallagher became the new Minister for the Public Service and the Thodey review of the APS finally came out of cold storage after Labor's victory at the election. Shortly after, the Hierarchy and Classification review was completed, setting the stage for a substantive APS reform agenda.
Gordon de Brouwer was brought back to oversee reform over the next two years. He has the unenviable task of keeping the many and urgent calls for competing reforms from spinning out of control.
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The Thodey principles will feature prominently: collaboration and partnerships to build trust, better services through data and digital, investing in people for capability, responsive organisations, and empowered leaders. Flatter structures recommended by the hierarchy review might also get a second look. Most agree the APS must be equipped to deal with uncertainty and complexity.
Public Service Commissioner Peter Woolcott, whose terms ends in 2023, was pointed in his remarks: "We're in a place where reform is being accelerated in order for us to deal with the expectations of government and the people, and the complexities of rapid technological, societal and geopolitical changes."
Workforce challenges
Labor ended the APS staffing cap in 2022, seen by many as a spiteful policy from the Coalition. Nowhere was this change more immediate than in Veterans' Affairs, which wasted no time migrating contractors over to the APS to tackle its claims backlog.
Defence and other national security agencies had the opposite problem this year, unable to fill thousands of positions as the country went through a labour shortage and industry was offering higher wages, especially for those with ICT, accounting and other in-demand skills.
Agency capability reviews, after a significant hiatus, will kick off again in 2023.
In memoriam
Besides Queen Elizabeth II's passing, there were many deaths that shocked the public service in 2022, including colleagues and mentors such as Brendan Sergeant, David Irine, Allan Hawke, Ken Jones and Roger Wettenhall.
What comes next?
PM&C boss Glyn Davis is looking forward to two additional developments for the APS in 2023: the National Anti-Corruption Commission, which will have jurisdiction over federal public servants, and continuing development on a referendum for Indigenous constitutional recognition with a Voice to Parliament.
Trust and satisfaction with Australian government services fell slightly in 2022, according to the latest annual survey commissioned by the Prime Minister's department, but Australians broadly have faith in federally-run services.
The theme of trust will remain an important focus. As Mr Woolcott observed, "all democracies are being challenged by the fracturing of public cohesion that social media can bring, and the actions associated with foreign interference and fringe groups".
The groundwork for new offices in Canberra will begin in 2023 - literally - with new construction set to begin for ATO premises in Barton and a national security bunker across from Parliament House.
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