The prime minister has joined the public sector union in criticising the Coalition’s plan to curb work from home options for public servants.
At the weekend, Anthony Albanese said he supported, where appropriate, public servants working from home. There are many benefits, said the PM – especially for women.
“We know that working from home has had a range of advantages,’’ Albanese said. “It has meant, for working families, where both parents are working, they’re able to deal with those issues of working from home – it’s enabled them to work full-time and it has increased workforce participation, particularly for women.”
Indeed, according to a survey conducted by the Community and Public Sector Union, the majority of women surveyed (96.7 per cent) said that flexible work arrangements are important or very important to them.
Many respondents (68.2 per cent) had caring responsibilities for either dependent children, older parents, partners, adult children or other relatives and friends. And 36.2 per cent of respondents had dual caring responsibilities. And of those with dual caring responsibilities, 7 in 10 also worked full-time.
“These figures make it abundantly clear that women are balancing a lot, and that the ability to be flexible about when and where they are working is helping them to keep their heads above water,” CPSU national secretary Melissa Donnelly said. “The reality is that flexible work is helping women increase their working hours, with benefits for both them and their families, as well as increased productivity.”
The biggest winner in all of this is the APS
Since the introduction of WFH, the proportion of women electing full-time work over part-time has increased. In 2020, 72.2 per cent of women working in the public sector were working full-time. As of June 2024, that had jumped to 79.9 per cent – the highest percentage on record.
“The biggest winner in all of this is the APS,” Donnelly said. “Thanks to flexible work arrangements, the public service is now tapping into talent from right across Australia. In the past, rigid expectations about where work can be done would have locked many out of pursuing public sector employment.”
Hybrid working arrangements “are positive and productive”, Donnelly said. And it’s not just women who benefit from working from home, she added. “Flexibility has opened the doors of employment to people who have otherwise been shut out, including people with disability and people from regional and rural Australia.”
The Coalition’s plan to restrict public servants from working from home “will only weaken the services Australians rely on”, Donnelly said.
Australians want a strong, capable public sector – “one that’s ready to serve the community when it matters most”, she said. “Whether it’s supporting veterans, safeguarding our biosecurity, regulating aged care, delivering the NDIS, or responding to disasters like Tropical Cyclone Alfred – with agencies like Services Australia, the National Emergency Management Agency, the ABC, and the Bureau of Meteorology working together to protect and support Australians – a well-resourced public service is essential.”
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