- 2018 public sector Employee Perception Survey has been published today
- Nine government departments surveyed their staff
- Survey conducted during a period of significant change across WA's public sector
The 2018 Employee Perception Survey has been published today, providing a snapshot of employees' perceptions during a period of significant change in Western Australia's public sector.
Nine departments amalgamated through the McGowan Government's Machinery of Government changes took part in the survey, which measured staff's perceptions in areas relating to their job, workplace and whole-of-sector topics.
Perceptions were sought around culture and leadership, managers and supervisors, ethical behaviour, team dynamics, diversity and inclusion, and job empowerment.
It found while staff in government departments are proud to work for the Western Australian public sector, some survey results showed a decline in perceptions, which is to be expected during and following major reform.
Departments with relatively few changes tended to score higher than those experiencing significant changes in areas such as staff work locations.
Departments will now use the survey results to develop short and longer term plans to engage staff and continue to improve culture.
The survey is conducted annually by the Public Sector Commission. Aggregate results will be reported to Parliament in the 2018 State of the Sectors Report in November.
As stated by Premier Mark McGowan:
"At a time my Government is focused on driving a more efficient and effective public sector, it is important to understand how this change has impacted the state of public administration.
"The survey results will assist us to continue our public sector reforms, which will create a more efficient public sector that delivers better services to the community.
"While overall staff engagement is lower than previous years, we know from other public and private sector jurisdictions that have undergone significant reform that a decline in perceptions should be expected during and following change.
"I'm pleased to see that the departments are using the insights from their surveys to scrutinise what they are doing well in managing change and where they can make improvements."
