Officers who elect to take voluntary redundancy may receive considerable redundancy compensation payouts. Some officers subsequently re-enter the public service including employment on either a part-time, temporary or consultancy basis.

Employees accepting voluntary redundancy are required to refund to the Crown that proportion of the severance payment applying to the period of re-employment should they be re-employed in any capacity in a New South Wales public agency within the period covered by the separation payment.

Ministers have in the past been able to waive this requirement in circumstances where re-employment occurred on a limited or part-time basis or was at a substantially lower rate of pay.

In keeping with the conditions applying to executive office holders however, and the need to exercise budgetary restraint, the Ministerial discretion to waive repayment is now not available.

Could you please ensure that Chief Executive Officers develop procedures within their agencies to ensure that the requirement for repayment is met.

Bob Carr
Premier