EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1987 No. 157
PUBLIC SERVICE REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Issued with the authority of the Public Service Board
Subsection 97(1) of the Public Service Act 1922 (‘the Principal Act’) provides that the Public Service Board may, with the approval of the Governor-General, make regulations prescribing all matters which are required or permitted to be prescribed or which are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Principal Act.
A number of the provisions of the Public Service Legislation (Streamlining) Act 1986 (‘the Streamlining Act’) come into operation on 20 July 1987, the date Proclaimed by the Governor-General for the purposes of subsection 2(3) of the Streamlining Act (Executive Council Minute No. PSB 1987/12 refers).
The statutory rules give effect to sections of the Principal Act inserted by the Streamlining Act in relation to the redeployment and retirement of officers. Retiring age provisions from the Commonwealth Employees (Redeployment and Retirement) Regulations have been relocated, as those Regulations lapse with the repeal of the Commonwealth Employees (Redeployment and Retirement) Act 1979 by the Streamlining Act. The opportunity has also been taken to amend regulation 76 of the Regulations.
Regulation 1 provides for the regulations to come into operation on 20 July 1987.
Regulation 2 omits paragraph 76(d), which provides that a decision to defer or refuse to grant a salary increment to an officer is a decision to which the review procedures in Division 2 of Part III of the Regulations apply. The amendment gives effect to the Government decision to abolish appeals in relation to grant and deferment of increments (Cabinet decision No. 8488 and Cabinet Memorandum No. 4344 refer).
Regulation 3 repeals the heading to Part VI of the Regulations, “REDEPLOYMENT AND RETIREMENT OF SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE OFFICERS”, replacing it with the heading “REDEPLOYMENT AND RETIREMENT”. Part VI will now cover Senior Executive Service (‘SES’) officers, in Division 1, and non-SES officers in Division 2.
Regulation 4 provides for the repeal of regulation 119 of the Regulations, which prescribes appeal periods for the purposes of appeals made in relation to declarations under section 76K of the Principal Act. Repeal of that regulation is consequential on the repeal of section 76K.
Regulation 5 amends regulation 120 of the Regulations by reducing the period of appeal against the giving of a notice of unattachment, reduction or retirement to an SES officer under subsection 76L(3) of the Principal Act. The period is reduced from 21 to 14 days. The regulation also inserts subregulations 120(1A) and (1B), which provide for the taking of effect of notices under subsection 76L(3). Subregulation 120(1A) provides that where an SES officer has consented to the giving of such a notice, that notice takes effect on a day specified in the notice and agreed between the officer and the Board, but not earlier than the day the notice is given to the officer. Subregulation 120(1B) deals with the case in which an officer has not consented to the giving of the notice, and is able therefore to appeal against that action. In such a case the notice takes effect on the day specified in the notice (being a day occurring after the expiry of the 14 day appeal period), or where an appeal is lodged, on the determination or withdrawal of the appeal.
Regulation 6 inserts Division 2 into Part VI of the Regulations, to provide for the redeployment and retirement of non-SES officers.
Regulation 120A is an interpretation provision. It applies the expanded definition of ‘officer’ in Division 8C of the Principal Act to Division 2 of the Regulations.
Regulation 120B provides, for the purposes of section 76U of the Principal Act, minimum and maximum retiring ages of 50 years and 60 years respectively for officers who have performed the duties of Air Traffic Controller or equivalent for a period of at least 10 years. This regulation is substantialy a transcription of a provision under the Commonwealth Employees (Redeployment and Retirement) Regulations, which Regulations lapse with the repeal of the parent Act.
Regulation 120C provides for the taking of effect of notices of reduction or retirement of non-SES officers issued under section 76W of the Principal Act.
Subregulation (1) is a reading provision.
Subregulation (2) provides for the taking of effect of a notice where the officer has consented to the giving of the notice. Under paragraph 120C(2)(a) a notice given on the ground of invalidity takes effect on a day specified in the notice and agreed between the officer and the Secretary or the officer and the Public Service Board. That day of effect may be earlier than the day on which the notice is given to the officer. Provision is thus made for retrospective retirement on the ground of invalidity. Paragraph 120C(2)(b) provides that a notice given on any of the other grounds - inefficiency, loss of qualification or redundancy - takes effect on a day specified in the notice and agreed between officer and Secretary or officer and Board. That day of effect must not be earlier than the day on which notice is given to the officer.
Subregulations 120C(3) to (6) provide for the taking of effect of a notice where the officer has not consented to the giving of that notice. Subregulation (6) provides that, in general, such a notice takes effect on the latest of: the day specified in the notice; one month after the day the notice is given; or, where there is an appeal, the day the appeal is withdrawn or determined, Subregulations (3) and (4) make special provision for the date of effect to be suspended where the provisions of an industrial award are applicable: in the case of a retirement on the ground of invalidity, until the officer’s full-pay sick leave credits are exhausted; in the case of a redundancy retirement, until the end of the officer’s retention period.
Regulation 120D sets a period of 14 days after the officer has received a notice of reduction or retirement as the period during which appeal against that notice may be made.
Regulation 7 inserts Schedules 1D and 1E, which list Air Traffic Controller offices and equivalent offices respectively, for the purpose of regulation 120B.