Policy General Employment Policy

[Welfare Ministry]

MINISTRY OF WELFARE

General Employment Policy

This policy establishes the general conditions of employment and standards of conduct applicable throughout the Ministry.​

OVERVIEW
This policy applies to all employees of the Ministry of Welfare. Additional professional standards and role requirements may be established by each Office.

For the purposes of Ministry of Welfare policy and guidance documentation:​

• MUST indicates a binding duty. A failure to comply ordinarily constitutes misconduct.​
• SHOULD indicates expected 'best practice'. A failure to comply MAY constitute misconduct without reasonable justification.​
• MAY indicates permission or discretion.​

STANDARDS OF EMPLOYMENT​

Employees MUST:

• follow all Ministry policies applicable to their work;
• carry out their duties honestly, carefully and professionally;
• follow lawful and reasonable instructions from the Minister, their Secretaries or an authorised deputy;
• treat colleagues and members of the public with respect;
• protect confidential Ministry and personal information;
• keep official records accurate;
• disclose any conflict of interest affecting their work; and
• report serious misconduct, abuse or danger.

Employees MUST NOT:

• harass, abuse, threaten or unlawfully discriminate against another person;
• misuse their role or Ministry resources; or
• claim to speak on behalf of the Ministry without authority.

Employees SHOULD remain reasonably active.

ABSENCES
Employees who expect to be unavailable or significantly less active SHOULD post an absence notice in the〔〕time-away channel in the Ministry of Welfare Discord server. They SHOULD also update the tag on their office channel(s) to reflect that they are away.

An absence notice SHOULD include an expected return date and MAY include reasons for the absence.

An employee absent for longer than 30 days MUST provide an update at least once every 30 days confirming whether they intend to return.

Upon returning to work after an absence, employees SHOULD update their previous notice to reflect their return date, and remove their out-of-office tags from their Ministry offices.

REMEDIAL ACTION
Where an employee breaches Ministry policy or engages in misconduct, remedial action MAY be taken. This can include:

• guidance and support;
• a formal warning;
• restriction or reallocation of duties;
• suspension; or
• termination of employment.

A decision over remedial action made by an Office of the Ministry MAY be reviewed by the Minister upon request.

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The General Employment Policy is updated and enforced at the discretion of the Minister and their Secretaries. Any doubts, concerns or requests may be raised directly with the Minister or Secretaries.

Keep Well ​