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The Australian opposition party has pledged to crack down on the “unsustainable” remote work arrangements for civil servants, and has vowed to return public sector workers to their offices full time if elected later this year.
The move has sparked accusations and comparisons with Donald Trump, who urged government employees to return to their offices and accept redundancy since returning to the US president in January.
Jane Hume, senator and minister of the opposition Liberals, said her party would force Australian civil servants to stay in the office five days a week.
Speaking to a think tank at Menzies Research Centre on Monday evening, Hume argued that it was “common sense” for the government to give public service workers a “blank check” to work from home, and rewind policies.
Australia’s federal public services employs 365,400 staff, including defense personnel, according to government data. The current agreement between the government and public sector unions does not limit the number of days employees can work from home.
Liberal leader Peter Dutton calls the arrangement “unacceptable” and claims government workers are refusing to show up for work.
He spent a critical part of his campaign for future elections, cutting jobs in the public sector and a more efficient government.
However, changes to Australia’s public sector homework policies may prove difficult as the Union agreement is in effect until 2027.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese accused him of opposing Trump and Elon Musk of emulating a drastic drive to reduce the US government. “We don’t need to adopt all of America’s policies,” he told reporters Tuesday.
Many Australian companies, including national banks, have also already moved to limit remote working. According to a government survey, about 36% of Australian workers work regularly from home, starting from 41% during the coronavirus pandemic.
Hume alleged that public services did not follow the trend, with 61% of civil servants working remotely, up 22% in 2019 from 55% in 2022.
“Ending work from home on this Trump imitation plan is a truly attack on flexible work arrangements and will hurt working women the most,” said Australian Labor Union Council Chairman Michele O’Neill.
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She added that Dutton’s party should support policies that support women’s participation in “unconscious” workplaces following Trump.
Dutton spoke with a Queensland reporter on Tuesday to deny public sector remote working discrimination against women.
However, Fiona McDonald, policy director for the Future Work Centre at the Australian Institute think tank, noted that repealing the remote work order could backfire by forcing talented workers to quit public services.
She also added that by making more workers pay for travel and childcare, it would cancel out the benefits of productivity.
“There’s no good basis for this,” she said. “I don’t know who’s attractive. It’s a pretty cheap attempt to look like it’s working for efficiency that isn’t actually there.”
