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A review is set to look into work culture in Government following the resignation of three high-profile individuals and "further concerns in relation to behaviour and culture within the organisation".
The review will look into grievance and disciplinary procedures and how leadership changes affect employees.
The Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel will look at how effectively the States Employment Board has implemented improvements outline in the previous review, published in 2021. It will also consider a restructure of the Chief Executive role along with its impact on the Cabinet Office and workplace culture.
Suzanne Wylie resigned as Government Chief Executive in March this year – just over a year after taking on the role, while two senior figures within the Health Department, Caroline Landon, director-general for Health, and chief nurse Rose Naylor, announced their resignations in the same month.
The panel cited these resignations alongside "further concerns in relation to behaviour and culture within the organisation" as the reason for the follow-up review.
In 2021, the Scrutiny panel at the time produced a report on the work culture in Government and made 24 recommendations for improvements. The SEB accepted 13 of the recommendations in full and two in part, rejecting the remaining nine suggestions.
Pictured: Scrutiny chair Deputy Sam Mézec said that "ensuring a positive and inclusive work environment is crucial for delivering high-quality public services".
The new review will hold public hearings with ministers and the SEB in October and November this year.
The Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel's goal is to present a Scrutiny report complete with recommendations for the Government in early 2024.
The panel agreed on a list of topics to focus on, including how effective the current grievance and disciplinary procedures are and if they need to change, how effective employee-related policies and procedures are, and how changes – such as restructuring and Chief Executive changes – impact employees.
Scrutiny chair Deputy Sam Mézec said: "The Government of Jersey employs over 7,000 individuals, and ensuring a positive and inclusive work environment is crucial for delivering high-quality public services.
"This review builds upon the previous panel’s work and aims to assess the progress made in addressing raised concerns and recommendations.
"Given the recent resignations of key officers and allegations of inappropriate behaviour and leadership concerns, this review is particularly important.
"We look forward to working with Ministers and key stakeholders to ensure we can produce some useful recommendations for the Government."
Pictured top: Suzanne Wylie resigned from her post as Government CEO in March. (Government of Jersey)
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