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Coalition party leader Peter Dutton continues to double down on his plan to cut the jobs of 36,000 public servants hired under the Albanese government – if successful in the upcoming federal election.
Peter Dutton continues to wax lyrical about his plans to cut the job roles of 36,000 public servants – a move that is eerily similar to those made by US President Donald Trump and Elon Musk through their newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Since re-election, Trump has embarked on a mission to cut what he deems as “wasteful spending” in the public sector. This has led to mass terminations of probationary federal employees in the US, as well as some federal workers who fit the DEI-hire description being put on leave.
Following the Trump playbook, Peter Dutton has pledged to carry out a similar plan, claiming the culling of thousands of public service roles would effectively pay for a $8.5 billion boost to Medicare, according to The Guardian.
“The government’s put on an additional 36,000 public servants,” said Dutton. “We will reduce that number, and the savings there will be about $6 billion a year. That’s the advice that we have.”
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has claimed these proposed cuts would “result in one in five public sector jobs being lost around the country, impacting services from pensions and veterans’ payments, to the operation of regional weather stations”.
Speaking on the proposed cuts, ACTU president Michele O’Neil said: “Job cuts mean service cuts to all Australians. The only winners from Peter Dutton’s cuts are big consultants that will profit from this outsourcing, as well as multinational companies that will have weaker oversight on their tax avoidance.”
“Sixty per cent of public service workers are based outside of Canberra. Cutting 20,000 of those jobs means we lose the expertise, services and incomes these workers provide to local communities across Australia.”
Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) national secretary Melissa Donnelly added: “Sixty per cent of public service jobs are being done in places like Townsville, the Blue Mountains and Goulburn.”
“Peter Dutton’s plan to rip 36,000 jobs out of the public service is a plan to rip money and jobs out of local economies, and good local services out of communities.”
The disdain towards this plan was swift from employee groups, similar to that of the public servant representatives in the US. As the campaign trail continues to heat up, more evidence of Dutton mirroring the tactics used by Trump during his election campaign is revealing itself.
Kace O'Neill
Kace O'Neill is a Graduate Journalist for HR Leader. Kace studied Media Communications and Maori studies at the University of Otago, he has a passion for sports and storytelling.
