ODPP resourcing and workloads

Executive, 28 April 2008

Report adopted

On 2 April the Director of Public Prosecutions confirmed, when asked by the PSA, that he had imposed a 'staff freeze'. This information had previously been disclosed to some staff of the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) by a manager's memorandum.

It has been apparent for some time that staff at the ODPP have been attempting to address workloads in circumstances of apparent increasing budgetary constraints, and in circumstances where the efficiency of the ODPP and its management has recently been seriously questioned by a report of the Auditor General.

There appears to be approximately 57 funded but vacant positions in the Office, in addition to approximately 30 positions which have become 'unfunded' this financial year. There is an increasingly common practice in the Office of 'parking' legal matters in administrative clerk practices, and Witness Assistance Service (WAS) officers have been told to restrict the services they provide to victims of crime.

The ODPP has a Workload Management Agreement (with the PSA) which is increasingly not being adhered to.

As a result, the PSA's ODPP Departmental Committee resolved to ask the PSA to impose certain work bans.

The Attorney General first asked to meet with the PSA to discuss the issues, and we met with him on 11 April. In a meeting which lasted more than one hour, the PSA's delegates impressed upon the Attorney the parlous state of the ODPP. He invited us to meet with some urgency with Ms Jan McClelland, who he had already engaged to report to him on the financial position of the ODPP. The PSA's delegates met with Ms McClelland for over three hours on 14 April.

The outcome of Ms McClelland's report, which we have been advised will form the basis of a submission by the Attorney General to the Budget Committee of Cabinet, is awaited.

In the meantime, the PSA's delegates after further consideration of the matter expressed a strong view that we cannot allow members at the ODPP to continue to attempt to address the workloads they arefaced with.

As a result, the PSA has directed members employed by the ODPP to:

1. Work to rule in accordance with the ODPP's Workload Management Agreement and each employee's Position Description;
2. Make no appearance, registration or preparation of Call-ups, Conviction (All-grounds) and Severity appeals (including ancillary matters) with the exception of matters where the ODPP has already appeared;
3. Take no action in relation to Confiscations;
4. Only appear (if a lawyer of Level 2 or above) in Sentence matters where the matter was committed for Sentence from their Local Court practice - no Level 1 Lawyer is to appear in District Court Sentences; and
5. Not attend any conference involving a victim of a sexual assault, domestic violence offence and matters involving children without the presence of a WAS officer.

Effective 24 April 2008.