EVERY government department except one has vacancies, it has emerged – despite headcount having increased by 1,000 in the past five years.
The government currently has 671 vacancies, according to newly released figures, with Health and Community Services having the highest number, 267.
Chief Minister Kristina Moore said that not all roles were being actively recruited for and that in some cases, the government might have made a decision to ‘delay or defer going to market’.
The figures were released yesterday by Deputy Moore, in her capacity as chair of the States Employment Board, following a question from Deputy Max Andrews.
Infrastructure, Housing and Environment has 147 vacancies, followed by Children, Young People, Education and Skills with 126.
Justice and Home Affairs has 40 unfilled roles, the Treasury has 35, while the Cabinet Office and non-executive departments have 24 each.
The Department for the Economy has just seven, while External Relations has one.
Customer and Local Services is the only department not reported to be understaffed.
It recently emerged that the government’s headcount had swelled by more than 1,000 people in the past five years.
At the end of 2018, the States staff headcount stood at 7,012, with 166 people classed in the top-earning bracket (£100,000-plus). But the end-of-year figures for 2022 show that the public sector ballooned to 8,127, with 209 in the £100,000-plus bracket.
And each of the top three earning brackets – £60,000 to £79,999, £80,000 to £99,999 and £100,000-plus – increased from the previous years.
Between the end of 2021 and the end of 2022, the data showed that the full-time equivalent headcount – which factors in part-time staff – had increased by more than 300 employees.
Spending on consultants and external labour stood at around £100m in the first half of 2022.
