Source: PSA
The PSA has called for mediation with the Office of the Ombudsman after the Office moved to disestablish jobs from its finance team and outsource their work to private accountancy firms, in breach of its collective agreement with the PSA.
The collective agreement requires the Office negotiate with the external contractor to attempt to have affected employees continue on the same or similar terms and conditions of employment.
The Office did not follow this process. Instead, it released a decision this week to disestablish eight roles, including financial leadership roles, and contract their work out to in an effort to save costs. The Office made no attempt to protect or transfer these workers’ employment when deciding to outsource their functions.
“It’s bad enough that a public sector organisation wants to hand its financial management over to a private company, creating a significant conflict of interest,” said Duane Leo, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi. “It is also leaving dedicated staff out in the cold.
“These workers dedicate their skills and experience to careers serving the public, and it is vital that we keep their skills and experience wherever possible.
“We’ve asked the Office to attend urgent mediation to resolve this matter. If it refuses, the PSA will seek all avenues to stop this change, including appropriate judicial or legal scrutiny.”
In reaching its decision, the Office ignored grave concerns about the risks of outsourcing and privatisation raised by PSA members during consultation. The PSA represents 133 people working at the Office.
“This decision is a desperate attempt to work with a budget that’s been shrunk by the Government and its ideological drive to cut costs,” said Leo. “And now we see who benefits; the Government would rather line the pockets of private contractors than properly fund functioning, independent public services.”
The rationale for the Office’s decision relies heavily on a report prepared for them by KPMG, which recommended disestablishing the roles and outsourcing the financial functions. The Office’s decision this week did not include a final decision on a vendor.
“The Office of the Ombudsman has a critical role in holding the entire public service to account,” said Leo. “Effectively managing its own financial capability should be a core part of the Office’s operations.
“Chopping up public functions and contracting them out will not give New Zealanders a public sector that delivers for them.”
The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.
