Minns stands on back-to-office stance despite Albanese’s objections

NSW Premier Chris Minns has stood firm on his support for cracking down on working from home, despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently praising the benefits of flexibility and labelling those against it as “out of touch”.

The work-from-home (WFH) debate has morphed into a hot-button issue for the upcoming federal election, with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton recently announcing his plans to force public servants back into the office five days a week. This was met with staunch criticism from workers, unions, and now Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The Prime Minister claimed that “working from home has had a range of advantages” and that the Opposition Leader’s stance on flexibility shows “how out of touch Peter Dutton is … Flexibility in workplaces has brought substantial benefits.”

Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) president Michele O’Neil vehemently disagreed with Dutton’s policy, with the union arguing that Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data displays that one in three workers could be impacted by the flow-on effect of these workplace changes.

“Working people in our outer suburbs face some of the longest and most expensive commutes. Forcing hundreds of thousands of workers back on the roads will mean less time with kids and more time in traffic,” O’Neil said.

“Blanket orders summoning people back to the workplace, will leave thousands without access to work-from-home settings and other flexible work options.

“This would be an instant productivity killer because flexible work has pushed women’s workforce participation to record highs, as 1 million women joined the workforce in the last four years.”

Premier Chris Minns, who orchestrated the “workplace presence policy” for NSW public sector workers, ordering them to increase their in-office attendance back in August 2024, stood firm on his decision, labelling himself as “a big believer” in the policy.

As reported by The Daily Telegraph, despite Albanese’s comments, Minns doubled down on his policy, stating: “We’re not changing our policy in relation to WFH, it was the right decision to make.”

“We think it’s made a big difference, not just for the Sydney economy and workplaces closer to the CBD, but it’s hugely important for the future of the public service in the state … I think it’s the right decision for the government.”

“We had to battle through criticism, but I’m glad we’ve done it.”

Minns added: “If you speak to people, particularly young people who come into the workforce, they’re desperate for mentoring, they’re desperate for some guidance in the workplace, and that’s just not possible to do via workplace memo or YouTube video.”

Although Minns believes his directive has bypassed the wave of conjecture that arose when it was first implemented, some NSW government departments are still experiencing teething issues with the policy – as many workers are still disgruntled with the intricacies of the directive.

As previously reported on HR Leader, the Public Service Association (PSA), which currently represents a number of Transport NSW (TfNSW) workers, has conducted a survey putting pen to paper regarding concerns around the workplace presence policy.

According to a PSA spokesperson, many offices in their current state don’t have the facilities nor equipment to accommodate workers who are returning, with some reporting that they have had to “sit on the floor” due to a lack of desks.

“Ninety or so [could] turn up to an office for an in-person day, and there [are] only 20 desks,” said the spokesperson.

HR Leader reached out to a TfNSW spokesperson who touched on these claims: “We did not receive feedback from our people during the workplace presence consultation period that suggested any employee of ours has had to sit on the floor to do their work.”

“For years, all our non-frontline employees have had the option to book desks, meeting rooms and other spaces in advance of getting to the office, be it their primary work location or at other one of our office spaces across the state.”

When Minns first introduced the policy, TfNSW set up a consultation with workers straight away, stating that the policy impacts around half of their 30,000-strong workforce.

“Transport for NSW stood up a working group immediately after the Premier’s Department circular was issued to lead our approach to implementing the updated guidelines on workforce presence, a process which has involved union engagement throughout,” the spokesperson said.

“Consultation that commenced last year has included people at Transport for NSW, Sydney Trains, NSW TrainLink, Sydney Metro and Transport Asset Manager.”

The PSA announced last week that TfNSW granted the union an extension on the consultation with their members through to tomorrow, 26 March, to which a review of the feedback will take place over the April period. The full implementation of Minn’s policy is set to begin for NSW transport workers from May through to September.