Shire of Augusta-Margaret River workforce grows almost 15 per cent over five years

The Shire of Augusta-Margaret River’s workforce has grown nearly 15 per cent over the past five years. The rise of about 25 full-time equivalent jobs from 174.5 budget positions in 2018-19 to 199 in the latest annual report was recorded before a decision in August to restructure the shire directorates. Under the change announced by then-shire president Paula Cristoffanini, director James Shepherd left the local government and his community development and corporate affairs portfolios were split into two new director positions. Speaking about the figures prior to her resignation, chief executive Stephanie Addison-Brown was unable to indicate what further increase in staffing could result from the most recent restructure. Acting chief executive Arthur Kyron told the Times existing workforce numbers would be reviewed as part of the eventual handover to the new permanent chief, who was currently being recruited. “Current staffing levels align with existing budgets and workforce plans,” he said. “These are reviewed annually and consider the evolving needs of our expanding community, which was reported to have grown by 17.6 per cent in the 2021 census. “My initial observations after my first month leading the administration are that the staff are dedicated to their roles and delivering the best outcome for the community. “I will be assisting council to appoint a new CEO and will provide any additional observations about the functioning of the shire to council as required.” The shire’s 2023 workforce plan, which was adopted in July, is expected to need revision due to the changes in its organisational structure. The July plan identified priority demand areas as well as growth in staffing for rangers, human resources and bushfire mitigation. New positions added in the 2023-24 budget included a business analyst and an events activation officer, 1.6 full-time equivalents in customer service, plus a maintenance traffic controller and almost two full-time equivalent positions for multiple roles in the new shire-run swim school. The annual report said the workforce growth came in at about 3 per cent annually since 2019, which was roughly on par with growth in rates revenue. There was also a 13 per cent voluntary turnover during this period. Of those employees, just 45 per cent were on either fixed or continuous full-time contracts, with 55 per cent of shire workers casual or part-time. For upper echelon employees, the annual report identified 11 positions with salaries between $130,000 and $190,000 per year. Last month the Times reported the chief executive’s total salary package was valued at about $340,000. Shire employees also received an annual 3.5 per cent pay rise while negotiations on the latest enterprise bargaining agreement continued.