Katy Gallagher warns of 3900 extra bureaucrats in budget
katy gallagher put public service bosses on notice after Tuesday's budget showed 3,900 additional bureaucrats since the last update. The federal government's civilian workforce will rise to 217,256 full-time equivalent employees in the next financial year, with Gallagher saying she is keeping an eye on the creeping numbers.
Gallagher on public service growth
The finance and public service minister said the rise could become a problem. Her warning came as the public service has grown by more than 45,000 places since the Albanese government came to power in 2022, according to the budget figures.
The government also revised the size of the service up to 215,941 from 213,349 in the last financial year. About 1,250 of the additional jobs last financial year came from contractor conversions at Services Australia, showing that part of the expansion came from work moving in-house rather than from fresh recruitment alone.
Agency changes in the budget
Defence will take on about 380 roles in the next financial year, and the Australian Submarine Agency will take on about 320. The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations will grow by nearly 150 roles, while the Australian Digital Health Agency will grow by just under 130.
Those gains sit alongside cuts elsewhere. The National Disability Insurance Agency will lose nearly 670 roles, the climate change department will lose just under 380, Home Affairs will lose about 225, and Services Australia will lose 675 roles despite receiving $1.7 billion for staff over the next two years.
Services Australia and future staffing
The Albanese government will evaluate future staffing needs for Services Australia alongside ongoing improvements to myGov service delivery. New plans will convert 1,400 more jobs previously done by third-party providers to public service positions, taking Labor's tally of converted jobs to 13,200.
Gallagher said, in response to Labor's public service increase, that the government has focused on restoring core work to the public service and slashing expenditure on expensive labour hire, contractors and consultants. The budget numbers show that approach is still adding staff in some places while cutting them in others, and the next pressure point sits with department heads who now have to absorb savings internally.
