Statutory Rules

1975 No. 91

REGULATIONS UNDER THE PAPUA NEW GUINEA (STAFFING ASSISTANCE) ACT 1973.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL of Australia, acting with the advice of the Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) Act 1973.

Dated this twenty-ninth day of May, 1975.

JOHN R. KERR

Governor-General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

D. R. WILLESEE

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

__________

Amendments of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations†

Parts.

1. Regulation 3 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is repealed.

Chief Officer

2. Regulation 5 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended by omitting the words “Director (Division No. 2), Office of the Australian Development Assistance Agency, Department of Foreign Affairs” and substituting the words “First Assistant Secretary (Training and Personnel) in the Australian Development Assistance Agency”.

Delegation by Chief Officer.

3. Regulation 6 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulation (1) and substituting the following sub-regulations:—

“(1) The Chief Officer may, by instrument in writing, delegate to a person appointed or employed under the Public Service Act 1922-1974 who is a member of the staff of the Australian Development Assistance Agency, either generally or otherwise as provided by the instrument of delegation, all or any of his powers and functions under these Regulations except this power of delegation.

“(1a) The Chief Officer may, by instrument in writing, delegate to a person employed—

(a) under Part II of the Act; or

(b) by the Government of Papua New Guinea or by an authority of Papua New Guinea,

either generally or otherwise as provided by the instrument of delegation, all or any of his powers and functions under sub-regulation 31 (3), regulation 75 and regulation 76.

“(1b) A delegation under this regulation may be expressed to be given to a person for the time being holding or performing the duties of a specified office or position.”.

Payments to be in Australian currency.

4. Regulation 8 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is repealed.

Deductions from salary.

5. Regulation 9 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulation (1) and substituting the following sub-regulation:—

“(1) Where—

(a) before 1 December 1973, a debt was due by an employee to the Administration of Papua New Guinea;

(b) the debt or a part of the debt existed on that date; and

(c) the debt or that part of the debt, as the case may be, has been, after that date, acknowledged (whether expressly or tacitly) by the employee,

the amount of the debt or that part of the debt, as the case may be, may be deducted from any moneys (including salary and allowances) payable to the employee under the Act or under regulations made under the Act.”.

Proceedings before Appeal Board.

6. Regulation 42 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulation (5) and substituting the following sub-regulation:—

“(5) Where a Board finds that a charge is not proved or allows an appeal, it may direct in writing that a specified amount, being the reasonable expenses incurred by the employee in prosecuting the appeal, be paid to him, and that amount shall be paid to the employee.”.

Recreation leave.

7. Regulation 48 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting from paragraph (b) of sub-regulation (1) the word “one-quarter” and substituting the word “two-thirds”; and

(b) by omitting sub-regulations (2), (6) and (7).

Intervals at which recreation leave to be granted.

8. Regulation 49 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulations (1) to (4) (inclusive) and substituting the following sub-regulations:—

“(1) Subject to these Regulations, recreation leave shall not be granted to an employee until he has completed a period of—

(a) 12 months’ service after the date on which he first commenced duty in Papua New Guinea; or

(b) 9 months’ service after the date on which he returned to duty after his last preceding period of recreation leave, long leave or furlough,

as the case may be.

“(2) Where an employee proposes to retire or gives notice of his intention to resign, the Chief Officer may grant to the employee recreation leave for service in respect of which the employee has not previously been granted recreation leave.

“(3) Where—

(a) an employee is entitled to be granted a period of recreation leave; and

(b) the grant of that period of recreation leave is deferred otherwise than at the request of the employee,

his next succeeding period of recreation leave may be granted to him at the expiration of a period of 9 months’ service after the date on which he would have returned to duty if the grant of the first-mentioned period of recreation leave had not been so deferred.”.

9. Regulation 51 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is repealed and the following regulation substituted:—

Payment of cost of passage of employee proceeding on leave.

“51. (1) Subject to these Regulations, where an employee who has been granted leave under these Regulations for a period of not less than 4 weeks travels from a place in Papua New Guinea to a place outside Papua New Guinea, he is entitled to have the cost of his return passage and, in the case of a married employee, the cost of the return passage of each member of his family so travelling, borne by Australia.

“(2) On and after the commencement of this regulation, an employee is not entitled to be granted a passage or passages, as the case requires—

(a) if the employee has not completed 12 months’ service since he first commenced duty in Papua New Guinea—until he has completed that 12 months’ service; or

(b) in any other case—until he has completed 12 months’ service since he was last entitled to be granted a passage or passages.

“(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-regulation (2), an employee to whom Division 3 applies is entitled to be granted a passage or passages, as the case requires, once in each period of 12 months commencing on 1 January.

“(4) Where an employee becomes entitled to be granted a passage or passages and he has not availed himself of a passage or passages to which he was previously entitled, that previous entitlement lapses.

“(5) Upon the application of an employee, the Chief Officer shall, subject to these Regulations, authorize payment of the cost of a passage or passages, as the case requires.

“(6) An employee may be granted the return passage for himself, and a married employee may be granted the return passage for himself and for each member of his family, travelling between the place in Papua New Guinea from which he leaves and—

(a) in the case of an employee who travels to a place in Australia—the capital city of his home State or other place in Australia entailing less cost in travel from that place in Papua New Guinea;

(b) in the case of an employee who was recruited in New Zealand and travels to New Zealand—Wellington, Christchurch or Auckland, whichever of those cities is, or is nearest to, the place where he was recruited;

(c) in the case of an employee (not being an employee who was recruited in New Zealand) who is a New Zealand citizen and travels to New Zealand—Wellington, Christchurch or Auckland, whichever of those cities is, or is nearest to, the place where he last resided in New Zealand; or

(d) in any other case—Sydney in the State of New South Wales.

“(7) On and after 1 June 1975, the grant of a passage shall not exceed the cost of the economy class return air fare for the journey to which that passage relates.

“(8) A passage or passages shall not be granted, or the cost of a passage or passages reimbursed, unless the employee makes a contribution of—

(a) in the case of an unmarried employee or in the case of a married employee if travel by a member of his family is not involved—$25; or

(b) in the case of a married employee where travel by a member of his family is involved—$30.

“(9) A married employee who is entitled to be granted a passage may be granted a passage in respect of travel by a member of his family irrespective of whether that member travels before the employee, with him or subsequently.

“(10) Where, before a married employee is entitled to be granted a passage—

(a) a member of his family travels on a journey in respect of which the employee would have been entitled to be granted a passage if that journey had been undertaken after the date on which the employee’s entitlement accrued in accordance with this regulation; and

(b) the employee bore the cost of that travel,

subject to sub-regulation (8), the employee is entitled, on that date, to be reimbursed an amount equal to the cost of the passage.

“(11) Where the cost of travel undertaken by a married employee or a member of his family is borne wholly or principally by Australia otherwise than in pursuance of these Regulations, the employee is not entitled to be granted, or reimbursed the cost of, a passage under this regulation in relation to that travel.

“(12) In this regulation, a reference to an employee shall be deemed not to include an employee who is the spouse of a married male employee.

“(13) In this regulation—

‘home State’, in relation to an employee (other than an employee referred to in paragraph 51 (6) (b) or (c)) means—

(a) where, before the commencement of this regulation, a State or Territory had been determined as the home State of the employee for the purposes of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations as in force at that time—the State or Territory that was so determined;

(b) if no State or Territory had been so determined—

(i) the State or Territory in which he resided immediately before commencing duty in Papua New Guinea; or

(ii) if he did not reside in a State or Territory immediately before he commenced duty in Papua New Guinea—the State of New South Wales; or

(c) where circumstances justify another State or Territory being treated as his home State for the purposes of this regulation—that other State or Territory;

‘member of his family’, in relation to an employee, does not include a child of the employee who is entitled to education fares under a determination made under sub-section 7 (2) of the Act;

‘Territory’ means an internal Territory.”.

Furlough.

10. Regulation 64 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting from sub-regulation (1) the word “twenty” and substituting the figures “10”; and

(b) by omitting sub-regulation (4).

Leave to employees not eligible for furlough.

11. Regulation 65 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting from sub-regulation (1) the word “eight” (first occurring) and substituting the figure “4”;

(b) by omitting from sub-regulation (1) the word “twenty” (first occurring) and substituting the figures “10”;

(c) by omitting from sub-regulation (1) the word “fifty” and substituting the figures “50”;

(d) by omitting from sub-regulation (1) the word “forty-five” and substituting the figures “45”;

(e) by omitting paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of sub-regulation (1) and substituting the following paragraphs:—

“(a) where the period of service is less than 8 years—for 2 months; or

(b) where the period of service is not less than 8 years but is less than 10 years—for 3 months.”;

(f) by omitting from sub-regulation (4) the word “twenty” and substituting the figures “10”;

(g) by omitting from sub-regulation (4) the words “but not due to misconduct or to causes within the control of the employee”;

(h) by omitting from sub-regulation (5) the word “twenty” and substituting the figures “10”; and

(i) by omitting sub-regulation (6).

Payment in lieu of leave on ceasing employment.

12. Regulation 67 of the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting sub-regulation (5) and substituting the following sub-regulations:—

“(5) For the purposes of this regulation, an employee shall be credited, in respect of any period of service in relation to which entitlement to recreation leave has not accrued, with pro rata recreation leave.

“(5a) For the purposes of sub-regulation (5), where the period of service of an employee exceeded the total number of his completed weeks of service, the period of the excess shall—

(a) if it comprised 4 days or more—be deemed to have been a complete week of service; or

(b) if it comprised less than 4 days—be disregarded.

“(5b) An employee shall, for the purposes of sub-regulations (3) and (4), be deemed to have been entitled, immediately before the date of his retirement, death or presumed death, as the case may be, to long leave at the rate specified in sub-regulation 62 (1) for each completed year in the period of his service in relation to which the employee was not, immediately before that date, entitled to be granted long leave in accordance with sub-regulation 62 (2).”; and

(b) by omitting from sub-regulation (6) the words and figure “Sub-regulation (5) does” and substituting the words and figures “Sub-regulations (5), (5a) and (5b) do”.