Canberra, April 7
Australia's Opposition party has abandoned its plan to end work-from-home (WFH) arrangements for public servants and cut 41,000 bureaucracy jobs, in a major policy reversal ahead of the general election.
Peter Dutton, leader of the Opposition coalition, announced the policy shift on Monday, admitting the party "made a mistake" and "got it wrong" with the plan that had proved unpopular with voters.
He said that a coalition government will not change current flexible working arrangements, including work-from-home policies, for federal public servants.
Instead of cutting 41,000 public service jobs to reduce government spending, Dutton said that a coalition government would reduce the public service workforce over five years through hiring freezes and not always replacing workers who retire or resign.
The governing Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, had repeatedly described Dutton's plan to cut the public service workforce as "Trumpian" and warned it could leave welfare recipients and veterans waiting several months for payments to be processed.