The Victorian magistrates court is considering cutting more than a quarter of its backroom staff despite its workload likely increasing as the Allan government presses ahead with “tough on crime” policies.
Leaked documents show it is proposed that 24 out of 92 staff from the courts’ corporate services department are made redundant, including those working in family violence and legal policy areas.
“The proposed changes come at a time when the Victorian public sector is facing fiscal challenges,” the documents dated 26 March state.
“The current financial environment in which all Victorian public sector entities are operating requires MCV [Magistrates’ Court of Victoria] to find more efficient and effective ways of delivering court services, in addition to realising our strategic goals to be future ready and strengthen the financial sustainability of the Court.”
The magistrates court is the lowest tier of court in Victoria, meaning almost anyone charged with a criminal offence faces the jurisdiction in the early stages of their proceedings. It also handles the majority of court notices in the state, such as family violence intervention orders.
One former senior courts employee, who was not authorised to speak publicly, said the changes would unwind progress made to reduce the backlog in cases since the Covid-19 pandemic.
There will almost certainly be an influx in more cases given the Allan government has cracked down on bail, the former staffer said.
“That’s where I go ‘Oh oh, this is kinda crazy’, given where we’re at with a youth crime wave,” they said.
“I appreciate this is a difficult decision to make, given the budget situation in Victoria … we’re at a stage where it’s like ‘What is the best bad decision’.”
But the former insider said the recent issue with family violence notices uncovered last month showed the importance of the work court staff were expected to do and the cost associated with getting it wrong.
Documents regarding the redundancies show that five legal policy staff positions will be made redundant and that there will also be cuts to the Family Violence Detail Strategy, Evidence & Reporting team.
“As the implementation of the Family Violence reforms and most of the reporting driven by the Royal Commission have now concluded, there would be a reduction in resourcing for this team,” the document said.
The cuts underline a fundamental challenge for the Victorian government: how to respond to constant clamouring about public safety while crippled by state debt.
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Last month it was revealed that those working in crime prevention were concerned that programs addressing the root causes of youth offending were at risk from dwindling funding.
In February, the treasurer, Jaclyn Symes, warned that thousands of public service jobs in Victoria would be slashed after a review ordered to bring the budget under control.
A courts spokesperson said it remained focused on service delivery.
“The proposed changes are being considered to help us be a more agile and flexible organisation while maintaining our commitment to the needs of court users,” they said.
“Any workforce changes are proposals only at this stage. MCV encourages staff to participate in the consultation process and provide feedback.
“We are committed to open dialogue with our people while we work through this process.”
A Victorian government spokesperson said the court operated independently of government and questions about those changes are a matter for them.
“We’ve been clear that we will never cut frontline workers and will resource the justice system appropriately following our new tough bail laws.
“We’ve delivered some of the highest levels of funding to the Magistrates Court in history, with its budget more than doubling in the last decade.”