In the process of restructuring organisations so as to produce a more effective and efficient public sector, retrenchment and redeployment of staff` is sometimes necessary.

The NSW Government is committed to ensuring that redundancy and redeployment policies and procedures do not have an inequitable impact on particular groups of people. Care must be taken that equal employment opportunity target groups - people with physical disabilities, people of non English speaking background, women and Aboriginal people - are not disproportionately affected by the decision to reduce the overall number of jobs.

Discussions have been held between the Office of Public Management and the Office of the Director of Equal Opportunity in Public Employment (ODEOPE) on how best to ensure that the process of restructuring in public sector organisations does not unduly and unnecessarily disadvantage EEO target group members.

The Premier has endorsed the recommendation that has emerged from these discussions, that the advice of ODEOPE be sought throughout the restructuring process on means of reducing or eliminating any disparate impact on EEO target groups.

The advice will be directed to the identification of alternative methods of achieving organisational objectives which would have a less detrimental effect on the representation of EEO target groups within the organisation.

R.G. Humphrey
Director- General