logo
Almost 1,000 jobs including senior roles set to scrapped from Transport for NSW as part of major departmental restructure

Almost 1,000 jobs including senior roles set to scrapped from Transport for NSW as part of major departmental restructure

Sky News AU6 days ago
Hundreds of Transport for NSW staffers are set to be let go as part of a huge departmental reform.
An email from Transport for NSW Secretary Josh Murray on Wednesday, seen by The Daily Telegraph, notified workers about the impending job cuts.
About 950 senior service manager and award roles will be slashed in addition to 300 senior executive jobs, with 200 of the latter cohort having already been actioned.
It is understood the changes are part of the next phase of the department's organisational restructure.
In his email to staff, Mr Murray acknowledged the announcement would be "concerning" and "unsettling for many".
"We have to get back to a model that is sustainable for the long term, delivers on our commitments, and provides appropriate career paths for our people," Mr Murray said.
"That also means reducing duplication, removing unclear reporting lines, and ensuring all our people are clear on what's expected of them.
"Change of this scale is never easy, and it affects all our people, their work, their teams, and their sense of certainty about the future."
There will reportedly be no cuts to front line service roles.
In a statement to SkyNews.com.au, Mr Murray said the decision to cut jobs was not made lightly but the move is needed to achieve a sustainable and efficient department structure.
"These decisions are never easy - they affect real people and teams who've contributed to vital work. But they are necessary to ensure we have a sustainable structure that provides the best possible value to the people of NSW," he said.
"As one of the largest public service agencies in the country we have a responsibility to ensure we operate efficiently.
"Every dollar saved from our costs is a dollar for schools, hospitals, police or frontline public transport and roads, so we must build our budgets carefully."
Mr Murray said the current level of job growth would be "unsustainable", noting Transport for NSW has added an "average of two new senior executive roles" every week from 2021 to 2023.
There has also been a 30 per cent increase in senior management and award staff, Mr Murray said.
'A more efficient structure was put in place last financial year to align the size of our workforce with the needs of communities we serve," he said.
"We have been centralising functions such as procurement, project support, communications and technology."
In 2023, now-NSW Premier Chris Minns made an election pledge to reduce senior executive roles by by 15 per cent.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next
You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next

Sydney Morning Herald

time28 minutes ago

  • Sydney Morning Herald

You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next

Sydney commuters would be paid to ride an e-bike or e-scooter to work under a European-inspired financial incentive scheme being assessed by the NSW government, in a bid to promote the uptake of electric-powered devices on streets across the state. Financial incentives for e-micromobility devices were proposed in a secret internal document circulated by a senior government bureaucrat in October, three days before then-transport minister Jo Haylen announced a pathway for the legalising of e-scooters on public roads. Among the sweeteners suggested were a tax incentive that would allow riders to claim a per-kilometre allowance for each commute, which could replicate successful schemes applied in the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, with the latter country observing cycling participation more than doubled in the second year of the program. Transport for NSW projected that e-bike riders would undertake four additional trips every month with the backing of the financial incentive, while e-scooters, which would be made legal subject to the passing of legislation later this year, would be used on six further occasions each month. 'When the conditions are right, the experience in other jurisdictions shows that financial incentives can increase ownership and ridership,' read the internal document, obtained by the Herald. 'Locally, research has shown that financial incentives would encourage people in NSW who already own a bike (including e-bikes) and e-scooters to take more trips.' The document also suggested introducing one-off rebates to offset the expense of purchasing an e-bike, mirroring schemes implemented in Queensland and Tasmania over the past two years Australia Institute research manager Morgan Harrington, who last year co-wrote a discussion paper recommending a ride-to-work cycling allowance be introduced, said fresh ideas are needed to confront transport challenges posed by rising populations and urban sprawl.

You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next
You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next

The Age

time28 minutes ago

  • The Age

You're paid to cycle to work in France and the Netherlands. Sydney could be next

Sydney commuters would be paid to ride an e-bike or e-scooter to work under a European-inspired financial incentive scheme being assessed by the NSW government, in a bid to promote the uptake of electric-powered devices on streets across the state. Financial incentives for e-micromobility devices were proposed in a secret internal document circulated by a senior government bureaucrat in October, three days before then-transport minister Jo Haylen announced a pathway for the legalising of e-scooters on public roads. Among the sweeteners suggested were a tax incentive that would allow riders to claim a per-kilometre allowance for each commute, which could replicate successful schemes applied in the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, with the latter country observing cycling participation more than doubled in the second year of the program. Transport for NSW projected that e-bike riders would undertake four additional trips every month with the backing of the financial incentive, while e-scooters, which would be made legal subject to the passing of legislation later this year, would be used on six further occasions each month. 'When the conditions are right, the experience in other jurisdictions shows that financial incentives can increase ownership and ridership,' read the internal document, obtained by the Herald. 'Locally, research has shown that financial incentives would encourage people in NSW who already own a bike (including e-bikes) and e-scooters to take more trips.' The document also suggested introducing one-off rebates to offset the expense of purchasing an e-bike, mirroring schemes implemented in Queensland and Tasmania over the past two years Australia Institute research manager Morgan Harrington, who last year co-wrote a discussion paper recommending a ride-to-work cycling allowance be introduced, said fresh ideas are needed to confront transport challenges posed by rising populations and urban sprawl.

Energy bills: price gaps between providers revealed
Energy bills: price gaps between providers revealed

News.com.au

time7 hours ago

  • News.com.au

Energy bills: price gaps between providers revealed

Homeowners and renters have been told to check their next energy bill as it is likely to be a fair amount higher amid rate changes across various networks and uneven deals in the market. Increases in energy charges came into effect over July and will affect hundreds of thousands of Aussies. For most, the increases will be about 25 per cent. But Canstar analysis revealed the rises have not applied equally across networks. This has led to vast differences among provider charges, with some lower cost electricity suppliers offering rates that would work out to be about $500 a year cheaper than the industry average, Canstar noted. Canstar insights director Sally Tindall said the price gaps were often the result of differences in the size of each energy network, which meant they were passing on costs in varying ways. 'The cost of electricity is made up of a number of different factors. While wholesale costs is one of them – which is the price paid to generators for energy – there is also network costs, retailer costs and environmental costs,' Ms Tindall said. 'The increase in many of these costs is, unfortunately, resulting in higher energy bills.' Canstar revealed that some of the biggest price variances were across NSW, Queensland and Victoria. The lowest cost plans in NSW from Essential Energy and Endeavour Energy were about $507 and $460 cheaper annually than the industry average, the comparison group found. In Queensland, Energex's lowest cost plan was about $444 a year cheaper than the industry average. Victorian households could get electricity rates at about $314-$358 cheaper than the industry norm on the lowest cost plans from Ausnet, Citipower, Powercor and United Energy, the Canstar analysis showed. Ms Tindall added that price changes this month were significant – albeit lower than those recorded over 2022, when the start of the Ukraine War and other factors sparked a global surge in energy prices. 'High demand for electricity, weather events and, on occasion, coal station outages over the last year have had an impact on wholesale prices,' Ms Tindall said. 'Network costs, that is, the cost of transporting energy to your home, is a major component of (prices). Depending on the network you're on, these costs can form up to 48 per cent of an electricity bill.' Compare the Market's economic director David Koch said July increases in electricity costs would impact around 800,000 households on standing offers. These customers were simply 'paying too much', he said. 'If you're on the standing offer, chances are you're already paying more than you need to for the very same electricity supply as your neighbours,' Mr Koch said. 'We know 80 per cent of households in the National Energy Market are overpaying for electricity because in so many cases there are better deals out there.' Recent energy price increases reflect ongoing cost pressures on providers, Mr Koch said. 'Wholesale prices only account for roughly a third of your energy bill, and regulators consider an array of other factors when determining prices,' Mr Koch said. 'Firstly, network costs continue to rise for retailers. The cost of materials to maintain the network has increased and it's costing more for distributors to read meters, maintain poles, wires and pipes and transform the grid. 'People may not realise that there's also a cost involved in meeting renewable energy targets. Outdated electricity grids and networks have been expensive to maintain and will cost even more to transform over the next 10 years. 'It's regular Aussie families who will bear the brunt as some of these costs are passed on. 'None of these changes will happen overnight, so we could face a long, protracted period of price pressure.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store