Hundreds of jobs could be at risk at the government agency responsible for investigating serious wrongdoing and mistreatment in aged care homes if the Coalition wins the upcoming election, according to warnings from the public sector union. The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has hired over 500 public servants since the 2022 election to manage a backlog of complaints and resolve a high number of conflicts of interest involving consultants who were paid millions of dollars for auditing in aged care homes.

Peter Dutton, the opposition leader, has pledged to reduce the size of the public service by 41,000 jobs over the next five years through “natural attrition,” which involves not renewing the contracts of non-ongoing staff. Dutton has stated that the aim is to ensure an efficient public service but has not specified which of the 41,000 positions would not be replaced. The latest budget papers showed that the commission’s average staffing level would increase from 1,598 to 1,918 next financial year, with the intention of ensuring older Australians’ safety and wellbeing.

The Community and Public Sector Union has expressed concern that a hiring freeze required to meet the reduction target could significantly impact the commission, especially since many staff are on non-ongoing contracts. The union estimates that a five-year staffing freeze could result in the loss of 508 jobs, or 26.5% of the 2025-2026 workforce.

The commission acknowledges the figures are based on government data but has not commented on the union’s conclusions. Data from the Australian Public Service Commission indicates that none of the jobs at the commission are considered service delivery roles, although staff do respond to inquiries and visit facilities.

Guardian Australia reached out to the Coalition campaign for clarification on whether the commission would be exempt from a hiring freeze but did not receive a response.

Melissa Donnelly, the national secretary of the CPSU, criticizes the proposed cuts, stating that they will compromise the commission’s ability to ensure aged care safety and that the cuts are poorly thought through, leading to uncontrolled reductions primarily affecting frontline services.

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Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/apr/11/coalition-election-win-could-cause-loss-of-hundreds-of-jobs-at-agency-scrutinising-aged-care-mistreatment-modelling-says