{"id":"public-service-regulations-1988","name":"Public Service Regulations 1988","slug":"public-service-regulations-1988","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":181754,"registerId":"wa-public-service-regulations-1988-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Public Service Regulations 1988","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nPublic Sector Management Act 1994 2\n\nPublic Service Regulations 1988\n\n- **Reprinted under the *Reprints Act 1984* as**\n- **at 25 November 2005**\n\n\nWestern Australia\n\nPublic Service Regulations 1988\n\nContents\n\n1. Citation 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n5. Lump sum payments 1\n\n8. Public comment 2\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 3\n\n  \n\n- Crest **Reprinted under the *Reprints Act 1984* as**\n- **at 25 November 2005**\n\n\nWestern Australia\n\nPublic Sector Management Act 1994 2\n\nPublic Service Regulations 1988\n\n##### 1. Citation\n\nThese regulations may be cited as the *Public Service Regulations 1988* 1.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThese regulations shall come into operation on 16 March 1988.\n\n[**3, 4.** Deleted: Gazette 16 Sep 1994 p. 4803.]\n\n##### 5. Lump sum payments\n\n(1) On application to the Chief Executive Officer, a lump sum payment for the money equivalent of any —\n\n(a) long service leave entitlement for continuous service as prescribed by section 59 of the Act 3 and accrued annual leave as prescribed by section 59 of the Act 3 shall be made to an officer who resigns, retires, is retired or is dismissed or in respect of an officer who dies;\n\n(b) *pro rata* annual leave shall be made to an officer who resigns, retires, is retired or in respect of an officer who dies, but not to an officer who is dismissed; and\n\n(c) *pro rata* long service leave based on continuous service of a lesser period than that prescribed by section 59 of the Act 3 for a long service entitlement shall be made —\n\n(i) to an officer who retires at or over the age of 55 years or who is retired on the grounds of ill health, if the officer has completed not less than 12 months continuous service before the date of retirement;\n\n(ii) to an officer who, not having resigned, is retired by the Commissioner for any other cause, if the officer has completed not less than 3 years continuous service before the date of retirement;\n\n(iii) in respect of an officer who dies, if the officer has completed not less than 12 months continuous service before the date of death.\n\n(2) In the case of a deceased officer, payment shall be made to the estate of the officer unless the officer is survived by a legal dependant approved by the Treasurer, in which case payment shall be made to the legal dependant.\n\n[**6.** Deleted: Gazette 13 Sep 2005 p. 4252.]\n\n[**7, 7A.** Deleted: Gazette 16 Sep 1994 p. 4803.]\n\n##### 8. Public comment\n\nAn officer shall not —\n\n(a) publicly comment, either orally or in writing, on any administrative action, or upon the administration of any Department or organization; or\n\n(b) use for any purpose, other than for the discharge of official duties as an officer, information gained by or conveyed to that officer through employment in the Public Service.\n\n[**9‑11.** Deleted: Gazette 16 Sep 1994 p. 4803.]\n\n[**12.** Omitted under the Reprints Act 1984 s. 7(4)(f).]\n\nNotes\n\n1 This reprint is a compilation as at 25 November 2005 of the *Public Service Regulations 1988* and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table. The table also contains information about any reprint.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Citation** | **Gazettal** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Public Service Regulations 1988* | 16 Mar 1988 p. 815‑18 | 16 Mar 1988 (see r. 2) |\n| *Public Service Amendment Regulations 1990* | 14 Dec 1990 p. 6178‑9 | 14 Dec 1990 |\n| *Public Service Amendment Regulations 1994* | 28 Jan 1994 p. 300 | 28 Jan 1994 |\n| *Public Sector Management (General) Regulations 1994* r. 28 | 16 Sep 1994 p. 4798‑803 | 1 Oct 1994 (see r. 2 and *Gazette* 30 Sep 1994 p. 4948) |\n| *Public Service Amendment Regulations 2005* | 13 Sep 2005 p. 4252 | 13 Sep 2005 |\n| **Reprint 1: The *Public Service Regulations 1988* as at 25 Nov 2005** (includes amendments listed above) | | |\n\n\n2 These regulations were originally made under the *Public Service Act 1978*. By virtue of the *Interpretation Act 1984* s. 38 and the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* Sch. 5 cl. 18, these regulations now have effect as if made under the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* so far as they are consistent with it.\n\n3  This reference to “the Act” is a reference to the *Public Service Act 1978* under which these regulations were originally made (see note 2).\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The legislation has shrunk dramatically from its original scope. Originally comprising at least 12 regulations covering various aspects of public service employment, it has been stripped back to just two substantive provisions (lump sum leave payments and restrictions on public comment). The bulk of public service employment conditions were transferred to the Public Sector Management Act 1994 and its associated regulations in 1994, leaving this instrument as a residual 'grandfathering' mechanism for specific leave entitlements accrued under the old Act and a lingering gag provision."},"complexity_factors":["Only 2 substantive provisions remain (regulations 5 and 8)","Heavy deletion history — 9 of the original 12 regulations have been deleted or omitted","Simple conditional structure in regulation 5 (if/then logic for leave entitlements)","Single cross-reference to 'the Act' (the Public Service Act 1978) with explanatory notes clarifying the legislative history","No defined terms section — terms like 'officer' and 'legal dependant' rely on the parent Act","Straightforward administrative procedure (application to CEO for payments)"],"plain_english_summary":"These are old Western Australian workplace rules for government employees (public servants) that were originally made in 1988. They have been heavily cut down over the years and now only do two main things:\n\n**1. Payouts for leave when employment ends (Rule 5)**\n- When a public servant leaves their job (through resignation, retirement, dismissal, or death), they or their estate can apply to get paid out for:\n  - **Long service leave** and **annual leave** they've built up\n  - **Pro rata (partial) annual leave** — but not if they were dismissed\n  - **Pro rata long service leave** in specific cases:\n    - If they retire at 55+ or due to ill health (after 12 months service)\n    - If retired for other reasons by the Commissioner (after 3 years service)\n    - If they die (after 12 months service)\n- If the officer has died, the money goes to their estate, or to a dependent approved by the Treasurer.\n\n**2. Gag rules on public criticism (Rule 8)**\n- Public servants cannot:\n  - Publicly criticise (in speech or writing) any government department's actions or administration\n  - Use information they learned at work for any purpose other than their official duties\n\n**Why this matters:**\nThese regulations are largely historical. Most of the original rules were deleted in 1994 and 2005, with the remaining provisions being absorbed into newer laws. The document shows how old employment rules get 'grandfathered' (kept running) under newer legislation — in this case, the *Public Sector Management Act 1994*.\n\n**Key context:**\n- These regulations were originally made under the old *Public Service Act 1978*\n- They now operate as if made under the *Public Sector Management Act 1994*\n- References to \"the Act\" in the text still point back to the 1978 Act for historical accuracy"},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"No scope can be assessed as no legislative text was available for review. The submission contained only a website error message and an Acknowledgement of Country statement."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was provided — the source returned a broken/expired URL error page rather than actual legislation","Analysis is impossible without substantive content to assess","Complexity rating of 1 reflects the absence of content, not the underlying legislation itself (which may be complex)"],"plain_english_summary":"## ⚠️ Content Unavailable\n\nThe legislation you've submitted — the **Public Service Regulations 1988 (WA)** — could not be analysed because the actual text of the law was **not retrieved**. Instead, the source page returned an error message indicating the URL is no longer active on the Western Australian legislation website.\n\n**What this means for you:** No substantive legal content was provided for review. To access this legislation, you should:\n- Visit the [Western Australian Legislation website](https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au) directly\n- Use the site's search menu to locate the *Public Service Regulations 1988*\n- Bookmark the new URL once found\n\nAlternatively, contact the **Parliamentary Counsel's Office Helpdesk** as suggested on the error page."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The regulations were originally made under the Public Service Act 1978 but, by note, now have effect as if made under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 ‘so far as they are consistent’ (Note 2). Several provisions have been deleted or omitted in later amendments (see Compilation table and deletion notes), so the practical scope has been narrowed or altered where inconsistencies with the 1994 Act arose or where provisions were removed."},"complexity_factors":["Cross‑references to another statute: references to ‘the Act’ (originally the Public Service Act 1978) and note that regs now operate as if made under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 (Note 2), requiring readers to check two Acts for full meaning.","Conditional eligibility rules in r.5 with multiple distinct branches (resignation, retirement, dismissal, death; age and service thresholds; pro rata distinctions).","Administrative discretions: lump‑sum payments require application to the Chief Executive Officer (r.5(1)) and Treasurer approval can determine payment destination for a deceased officer (r.5(2)).","Deleted and omitted provisions (several clauses marked deleted or omitted) create interpretive gaps and require consulting historical amendments (Compilation table).","Sparse enforcement and procedural detail in the instrument itself — mechanisms for review, timelines and penalties are not set out here.","Plain‑language prohibition in r.8 is broad but silent on exceptions or permitted forms of comment, so implementation depends on agency practice."],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set when and how public servants can get lump‑sum payments for accrued or pro rata leave (long service and annual leave), who qualifies, and which officials decide payments — applications are made to the Chief Executive Officer and a legal dependant payment requires Treasurer approval (r.5(1)-(2)).\n\nThey also forbid officers from publicly commenting on administrative actions or using information from their employment except to perform official duties (r.8)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988","history":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988/history","analysis":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/public-service-regulations-1988/documents"}}