Qld: Outsourcing Scandle

Queeensland's Health Department has become reliant on recruitment agency personnel as a result of widespread job cuts.

The change away from contract employment was part of the Newman Government strategy to improve efficiency and reduce unnecessary cost.

Figures published in the Queensland Government Contracts Directory show hundreds of thousands of dollars is going to employment agencies to provide labour to many departments, including a significant amount on administrative staff.

Recruitment companies are pocketing a small fortune from the State Government which is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on labour hire each month - after getting rid of 14,000 staff.

The Queensland Government Contracts Directory shows administrative staff who were targeted by the LNP's public service efficiency drive are being sought from recruitment agencies, along with specialised workers including nurses, doctors and IT experts.

In April, the Department of Communities paid close to $200,000 to Russo Recruitment and $691,125 to other agencies for labour hire.

Queensland Health was by far the biggest user of contract labour, shelling out more than $1.7 million for administrative staff, and skilled medical professionals in the first week of February.

Alex Scott from public sector union Together Queensland said employing people through personnel companies meant they would not show up in government job statistics.

"The job cuts are unsustainable so departments have to employ people through other means," Mr Scott said.

"Using employment agencies means managers don't have to tell the truth about the number of people working in their building."

He also cast doubt on the Government's assurance that there would be no more job losses in the public service, other than through natural attrition, which was expected to reduce the workforce by a third in the next five years.

"They know the community was appalled by the cuts last year, and the impact on the economy and people so it's not something they want to talk about," Mr Scott said.

"The program the Government's embarking on with contestability is just privatisation by another name, and as such will mean thousands more job losses."