The Public Service Commission’s proposal to cut nearly
30 per cent of Government Digital Delivery Agency (GDDA)
roles when the government is driving digital transformation
is irresponsible, the PSA says.
The timing of the
change proposal is also highly questionable given that a
caretaker government is in place, Public Service Association
Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi national secretary, Duane Leo,
said.
“It is highly inappropriate for the Public
Service Commission, which is supposed to guide Government
agencies on how to act when there’s a caretaker
government, to be pushing ahead with a significant change
proposal.
“The proposals include the politically
contentious axing of the Māori Digital and Crown
relationships unit and spreading its work across the Public
Service Commission,” Leo said.
The GDDA was
established within the PSC in April 2026 “to accelerate the
use of digital capabilities across the Public Sector”. It
took over the responsibilities of the former Government
Chief Digital Office, which was part of the Department of
Internal Affairs.
GDDA staff were informed today that
under the PSC proposal, 158 permanent GDDA roles (24 vacant)
could be reduced to 113. In addition, 14 fixed-term
positions would be reduced to just one.
“These
decisions will have huge ramifications not only for the
affected staff, but for the next Government’s ability to
deliver its digital strategy,” Leo said.
“Reducing the
GDDA by nearly a third is incredibly short-sighted,
especially for the agency responsible for leading the public
sector’s digital capability.
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“It’s a huge loss of
experience and institutional knowledge in critical areas
that should be helping expand digital technology capability
across the public service.”
The proposal shifts the
GDDA from delivering digital services that underpin digital
transformation to purely providing advice and guidance to
government agencies.
“This approach weakens rather
than strengthens the GDDA’s ability to support system-wide
digital transformation in the public service,” Leo
said.
The proposed shift from delivery means that the
Government Digital Services Delivery unit will be
axed.
This unit supports critical digital services for
people and businesses. These services include: www.govt.nz, the
government’s ‘front door’ to the public; data.govt.nz, a catalogue of
open data; jobs.govt.nz, which
advertises public sector roles; and marketplace.govt.nz,
where businesses sign up to be public service
suppliers.
“The proposal is unclear as to how these
services will continue to be supported,” Leo said.
The
proposal also includes a net increase of 18 roles in the
PSC’s Enabling Services team, which provides corporate
services such as finance, communications IT and governance
support.
Consultation on the proposed changes opens
Wednesday 11 November and closes Wednesday 2 December. The
final structure is not proposed to be in place until
mid-April next year.
The Public
Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is
Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest trade union, representing and
supporting more than 95,000 workers across central
government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health,
and community
groups.
