All vacancies filled after 60 staff leave Taxes Office in 18 months

Friday 02 October 2020

The Government’s Chief Executive says all vacancies have now been filled at the Taxes Office, after the service saw 60 members of staff leave in just 18 months.

Grilled by the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel about the high turnover within the department, Charlie Parker said it had been caused by an "exceptional set of circumstances."

Figures released last month showed that 34 members of staff had left the department in 2019, with a further 12 following this year. In total, the department saw 75 staff members depart in the past two years.

As of July 2020, the Department had the third highest vacancy percentage in the Government, with 17.72% (54 posts). 

Pictured: Charlie Parker, the Government Chief Executive, said Revenue Jersey is now "fully recruited."

Yesterday, during a quarterly hearing with the Chief Minister, which the Chief Executive attended, Senator Kristina Moore asked about the measures put in place to investigate high levels of turnover. 

While Mr Parker initially rejected the view that there is “considerable turnover” within the Government, Senator Moore pushed for answers by referring directly to the income tax department, known as Revenue Jersey. 

“There is a department that revealed to us in a public hearing that 60- half of the department left in a relatively short period of time, 18 months,” she said.

“I asked the Treasury Minister whether she felt it’s appropriate that the feedback we get is that people are regularly crying at their desks and she doesn’t seem to think that’s a problem. Yet there was a 50% turnover of staff in a relatively short period of time.”

Pictured: Senator Kristina Moore questioned what had been done to look at the “underlying causes” of that turnover.

She then pressed the Chief Executive to explain what had been done to look at the “underlying causes” of that turnover.

The Chief Executive, who said the taxes office was now “recruited fully”, went on to explain the department had a “particular set of issues."

“Revenue Jersey is a very small department, in fact it’s not even a department, it’s a division of department,” he said. “It is not necessary reflective of the whole organisation.

“We don’t have an undue high level of turnover and actually, although the Revenue Jersey situation is important, it’s got to be seen in a proportionate way, it’s a relatively small division." 

“I think there were exceptional set of circumstances behind that division’s issues,” he added. “Most notably, we had a manual system, we were doing a transfer, it was extremely stressful for some individuals. 

“There were a whole host of other changes, the move to a new system meant we had less people required, we had problems about recruitment for a set type of skills and we have issues about renumeration, all of which contributed to a higher than normal level of turnover, is that reflected everywhere? No.”

Pictured: Mr Parker said the last 10 months had "certainly contributed to adding to some of the difficulties" with people working from home.

Later on in the hearing, he added that the last 10 months had “certainly contributed to adding to some of the difficulties”, due to people working from home or having to be seconded in other areas of work. He however said the workforce had been brilliant and “absolutely risen to the challenge."

Mr Parker said that along with the Chief Operating Officer, John Quinn, he looks out for any “consistent thematic set of issues” within the Government. 

“Regularly on a random basis, I pick up people who have left and ask them why and it’s proved to be very insightful,” he added. “I don’t do it in an interrogatory way, I do it to understand the temperature of the organisation and that’s key to where we are.” 

He however added that the Government was now in a “very different place”, explaining: “Our turnover this year is much lower. Job security, concerns about availability of other jobs, all of those contribute to the uniqueness, so we have a turnover of 3 or 4% but that’s not reflective of where we would be longer term.”