Pandemic Response a Focus of our Year

  • 9 November 2021

The release of our audited accounts and operating report for the previous financial year shows the overarching and significant factor in our work this financial year has been the pandemic. The various industrial and health and safety issues that arose for hotel quarantine staff, contact tracers, prison officers, occupational health and safety inspectors, health workers and child protection workers to name but a few, have been our main focus. The role of our members in navigating the citizens of the States through the pandemic has been important and it has been our job to support them.  The Federal Office has acted as a facilitator in informing States of developing best practices, sharing information and protocols between the various State branches. This includes Federal Secretary participating in tripartite discussions with the Federal Government around the issue of the vaccines and the development of the priority list for the rollout of the vaccine program.

CAMPAIGNS AND INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITY

CPSU is represented on the global governing board of the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability (CICTAR) and supported the report released by CICTAR in December 2020 exposing the tax practices of outsourced labour hire corporations in the Australian Taxation Office, including companies such as Serco that hold contracts with state governments.

A member of the Federal Office staff also attended the International Labour Conference of the ILO as a worker representative on the Committee on the Application of Standards.

Discussions with PSI affiliate, Public Service Association of NZ, have taken place regarding the development of a skills and capability framework for the NZ public service based on the Short Courses program in public service “jobs families” being piloted in Victoria with a view to it being adopted and adapted for NZ.

Our Global Trade Union Federation Public Services International held their triennial Regional and sub regional conferences for the Asian Pacific and Oceania regions.

ASSISTANCE TO BRANCHES

A large part of the work of the Federal Office has been assisting Branches with a myriad of obligations, case work and advice ranging from liaising with the FWC on Right of Entry permit obligations.

GOVERNANCE

The Federal Office has a significant role in the Governance of our organisation, assisting Branches with their governance responsibilities under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2007 as well as meeting the statutory obligations of Federal Officers

ACTU

CPSU(SPSF) has participated in a range of ACTU committees, from Executive to Growth and Campaigns, the Industrial Legislation Committee, the Trade Group, the International Committee. Women’s Committee and the Youth Committee.

The Federal Secretary of CPSU(SPSF) is a Vice President of the ACTU and participates in a number of meetings with the other ACTU Vice Presidents.

UNION DETAILS

The number of equivalent full time employees at 30 June 2021 was 2.4 (2020: 5)

The number of financial members across 6 branches at 30 June 2021 was 81,159 (2020: 80,601).