Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

PARLIAMENTARY SERVICE ACT 1999 - SECT 10

             (1)  The Parliamentary Service Values are as follows:

                     (a)  the Parliamentary Service provides professional advice and support for the Parliament independently of the Executive Government of the Commonwealth;

                     (b)  the Parliamentary Service provides non‑partisan and impartial advice and services to each House of the Parliament, to committees of each House, to joint committees of both Houses and to Senators and Members of the House of Representatives;

                     (c)  the Parliamentary Service has the highest ethical standards;

                     (d)  the Parliamentary Service performs its functions with probity and is openly accountable for its actions to the Parliament;

                     (e)  the Parliamentary Service has leadership of the highest quality;

                      (f)  employment decisions in the Parliamentary Service are based on merit;

                     (g)  the Parliamentary Service provides a workplace that is free from discrimination and recognises and utilises the diversity of the Australian community;

                     (h)  the Parliamentary Service establishes workplace relations that value communication, consultation, co‑operation and input from employees on matters that affect their workplace;

                      (i)  the Parliamentary Service provides a fair, flexible, safe and rewarding workplace;

                      (j)  the Parliamentary Service focuses on achieving results and managing performance;

                     (k)  the Parliamentary Service uses Commonwealth resources properly and cost‑effectively;

                      (l)  the Parliamentary Service promotes equity in employment;

                    (m)  the Parliamentary Service provides a reasonable opportunity to all eligible members of the community to apply for Parliamentary Service employment;

                     (n)  the Parliamentary Service is a career‑based service to enhance the effectiveness and cohesion of Australia's democratic system of government;

                     (o)  the Parliamentary Service provides a fair system of review of decisions taken in respect of Parliamentary Service employees.

             (2)  For the purposes of paragraph (1)(f), a decision relating to engagement or promotion is based on merit if:

                     (a)  an assessment is made of the relative suitability of the candidates for the duties, using a competitive selection process; and

                     (b)  the assessment is based on the relationship between the candidates' work‑related qualities and the work‑related qualities genuinely required for the duties; and

                     (c)  the assessment focuses on the relative capacity of the candidates to achieve outcomes related to the duties; and

                     (d)  the assessment is the primary consideration in making the decision.