Thank you for providing this opportunity. My current input relates to the increasing ratio of contractor services used to supplement general staffing across the APS. I believe that this is eroding our capacity to attract young people of talent and to build a sustainable workforce. I work in a workplace with more than 50% of the people are contractors. They do not always understand or apply the basic elements of APS ethics or decision making approaches. They do not integrate with other staff or have delegations or accountabilities. So while they may add to 'hands on deck' they are rarely engaged in the longer term program deliverables that make the public sector the force that it was. I recognise that there is some issue that prevents staffing appropriately. But I do not understand why some of these contractors have been here more than 3 years, earning far more than a normal public servant but being far less engaged. Is there some other solution?
