Our workplace
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Our workplaces support our people to serve their community
Workplaces are not just the buildings we work in—our workplaces are made up of the processes, attitudes, opportunities and environments which help us thrive at work.
For many people, our public sector is a great place to work where we are engaged in our job, proud of what we do and understand what is expected of us. We believe what we do has a positive impact on the lives of Queenslanders.
While people’s expectations about workplaces are changing, we have something special to offer. A connection to purpose and service is one reason why Queensland’s public sector is a place where people want to forge dynamic and rewarding careers.
Being able to show people how their individual skills, experience and interests can contribute to better outcomes for Queenslanders is key to attracting people to the public sector—and to keeping them engaged throughout their careers.
While dynamic and rewarding, our daily work is rarely straightforward. We are required to balance being responsive to government and the community, with the highest standards of professional conduct and performance.
We cannot lose sight of the fundamental obligations we all have as public sector employees. Focus area 3 responds to the challenges – moving towards productive flexibility, earning trust in uncertain times and changing workforce demographics.
We provide better opportunities for current and future public servants to perform at their best
An ageing population means the proportion of working aged people will likely shrink in the future and competition for skills will increase. We will need to attract new people into the public sector by providing improved pathways for entry.
Careers will also be longer than in the past. We will need to ensure people have access to meaningful reskilling opportunities over the course of their career, and that we understand how to support people to thrive in contemporary workplaces.
Agility in how, when and where work is done is more important than ever. We need to grapple with how to support flexibility across our diverse and dispersed workforce while delivering the services the government and public expect. These approaches will help the Queensland public sector be a place that purpose-driven people want to work.
We better support our people to make decisions that serve the interests of Queenslanders
While the systems and processes that support our work may change as we respond to emerging challenges and digital disruption, we will always remain accountable to government and the public.
We need to facilitate the practical transfer of knowledge and expertise about what it means to be professional in the public sector—and how that differs to other sectors.
We need to empower people through practical guidance, processes and training to make decisions which serve the public interest. We need to ensure people who are joining the public sector for the first time, understand the unique requirements and standards of working in this sector.
Our progress
Learn more about the progress we have made towards delivering an Even better public sector for Queensland.
Goal 5: We provide better opportunities for current and future public servants to perform at their best
Deliver a public campaign that promotes the diverse opportunities that exist across the sector and clearly explains why the sector is a great place to build a career.
Expected delivery: End of 2024
What is this action about?
- The public sector provides many different pathways for people to serve—whether in frontline roles or roles that support frontline services.
- We want to attract the best people to work with us which means we need to tell people about the diverse career pathways that exist, the unique and meaningful work in the sector and what sector workplaces have to offer prospective employees.
- This action is about creating a campaign and resources that promote the sector’s employee value proposition and tells the story of the sector to attract the people we need to deliver better services and outcomes for Queensland.
Publish a new annual online report which provides government, the sector and the community with key information and insights about the public sector workforce.
Expected delivery: Mid 2024
What is this action about?
- An important part of building and maintaining trust is ensuring the community has access to information about our workforce and our performance.
- While data about our workforce is collected and published in different formats, there is an opportunity to ensure this data is brought together in an accessible and meaningful format—in other jurisdictions this kind of reporting takes the form of a 'state of the sector' report.
- This action will involve gathering and analysing workforce data and sharing of key insights and trends about the public sector workforce.
Goal 6: We better support our people to make decisions that serve the interests of Queenslanders
Develop a refreshed ethics framework following a review of the Public Sector Ethics Act 1994 and Code of Conduct for the Queensland Public Service.
Expected delivery: End of 2025
What is this action about?
- Working with integrity is a foundational aspect of all public sector work—no matter in what job or organisation.
- It is important that we support people to understand what is expected of them and what public sector ethics look like in practice.
- This action will include a review and analysis of the current ethical obligations that apply to public servants, including those provided for in the Public Sector Ethics Act 1994 and the Code of Conduct for the Queensland Public Service, to develop a contemporary ethics framework aligned with the Act.
Develop an induction and onboarding program on the craft of public service
Expected delivery: Mid 2024
What is this action about?
- Our work has many unique facets, and it is important that we support people to understand the common and fundamental aspects of public service work—or what is referred to as the craft of public service
- There is currently no public service-wide approach to providing consistent information to new starters about the sector, our role within Queensland’s system of government and our unique operating environment.
- This action will create a service-wide induction and onboarding program which provides both new and current employees with the knowledge they need to understand—and thrive in—the public service operating environment.
Pilot, refine and roll out the new induction and onboarding program of the craft of public service.
Expected delivery: End of 2025
What is this action about?
- The induction and onboarding program developed in Action 16 will need to capture the underlying objectives of public service work and be a practical resource for new and continuing public servants.
- Testing the program with a diverse range of public service employees will ensure that it is fit for purpose, useful and applicable to all roles and all levels.
- This action will pilot the induction and onboarding program developed in Action 16 within a few departments to refine the program prior to broader roll out.
Develop practical tools and guidance to support successful implementation of the new recruitment and selection processes which support equity and diversity under the Public Sector Act 2022.
Expected delivery: Mid 2025
What is this action about?
- The Act created a new framework for how we recruit and select people for jobs across the sector.
- Considering equity and diversity as part of recruitment and selection decisions helps us to build a sector which represents the community and can deliver services which consider the diverse needs of Queenslanders.
- This action will look what support might be required to deliver recruitment processes that align to the Act and promote a public sector workforce which represents the community it serves.
- Last updated:
- 28 February 2025