Determination 2008/4 - Determination Regarding Electorate Employees –
Relief Staff Budget

DETERMINATION 2008/4

 

Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984

 

DETERMINATION REGARDING ELECTORATE EMPLOYEES –
RELIEF STAFF BUDGET

I, JOHN FAULKNER, Special Minister of State, for and on behalf of the Prime Minister, determine under subsections 13(2) and 20(2) of the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984 that, on and from 1 July 2008:

  1. Determination 2007/4 dated 15 January 2007 is revoked.
  2. The annual Relief Staff Budget provided to each Senator and Member will be determined on the basis of:
    1. 150 days’ salary at the base salary point of the Electorate Officer B classification; and
    2. an additional 50 days’ salary at the base salary point of the Electorate Officer B classification where a Senator or Member is allocated an additional position for a second official electorate office; and
    3. for the 2008-09 financial year only, an additional $3,750 for each of the Members for the 10 largest electorates as at 1 July 2008: Calare, Farrer, Flynn, Grey, Kalgoorlie, Kennedy, Leichhardt, Lingiari, Maranoa and O’Connor.
  3. The Relief Staff Budget will be adjusted in line with changes to the base salary point of the Electorate Officer B classification.
  4. The Relief Staff Budget will be provided on a financial year basis (i.e. commencing on 1 July and ending the following 30 June).
  5. Each Senator and Member may engage relief staff as electorate employees, in accordance with the Commonwealth Members of Parliament Staff Collective Agreement 2006-2009 (the Collective Agreement) or successor agreements, up to the limit of his or her budget.
  6. Unused budget allocations cannot be carried forward from one financial year to the next, nor can the next year’s allocation be anticipated.
  7. The employment of electorate staff will not be a debit from the Relief Staff Budget under the following circumstances:
    1. filling of positions that are vacant due to resignation, retirement or termination;
    2. absences of one week or more on personal leave1; and
    3. all absences on the following types of leave:
      1. leave without pay;
      2. long service leave;
      3. maternity leave2; and
      4. miscellaneous leave paid in accordance with the Collective Agreement or successor agreements (including Defence Force service, jury service, State Emergency Services, participation in major international sporting events, bereavement, war service sick leave, political exchange leave, and other special purposes, but not including study leave).
  8. Where an electorate staff member is partially incapacitated (i.e. decided on the basis of medical advice), working in the electorate office up to but not exceeding 20 hours per week, that officer will be treated as totally incapacitated and full-time relief arrangements will apply.  When the affected employee’s work hours exceed 20 hours per week but are less than the standard weekly hours, relief staff may be engaged part-time in order to fully staff the position.
  9. In the event that an existing staff member fills a higher level position on temporary performance progression (higher duties), other than in the circumstances described in paragraph 7, the Higher Duties Allowance will be a charge against the Relief Staff Budget.

Dated this 19th day of Ausgust 2008

Signature

JOHN FAULKNER
Special Minister of State

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Footnotes

1 Where an employee who is absent due to personal illness or injury has exhausted their paid personal leave and therefore uses annual leave, they may be replaced without debit to the relief budget.

2 Where other forms of paid leave are used within the 52 week maternity leave period, the Relief Staff Budget provisions that apply to the type of leave used take precedence over the maternity leave provisions.

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