37Re‑engagement of election candidates

37 Re‑engagement of election candidates

Person may apply to be re‑engaged as an APS employee (1) An Agency Head may engage a person as an APS employee if: (a) the person is a former APS employee in the Agency, whose employment ended because the person resigned to contest: (i) an election for a member of a House of the Parliament of the Commonwealth or of a State; or (ii) an election for a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory; or (iii) an election for a member of the Torres Strait Regional Authority; and (b) section 32 of the Act (right of return for election candidates) applies to the person; and (c) the person applies to the Agency Head to be engaged as an APS employee within the applicable timeframe mentioned in subsection (2) of this section; and (d) if the former employment was non‑ongoing: (i) the employment would not have ended except for the resignation; and (ii) the person applies to the Agency Head to be engaged before the employment would have ended if the person had not resigned. (2) A person mentioned in paragraph (1)(a) must apply to the relevant Agency Head: (a) if the result of the election is not disputed—within 2 months after the declaration of the result of the election; or (b) if the result of the election is disputed—within 2 months after a court of disputed returns decides the petition disputing the result, or the petition is withdrawn or lapses; or (c) if the Commissioner has made a declaration under subsection (3)—as soon as practicable after receiving notice of the declaration. (3) If the Commissioner is satisfied that it is appropriate to do so, the Commissioner may declare that the person is taken to be a former APS employee of a specified Agency for the purposes of paragraph (2)(c).

Note: Example: The Commissioner may make a declaration if the Agency in which the person was employed no longer exists or is no longer responsible for duties that were previously carried out by the employee.

Basis on which person may be re‑engaged as an APS employee (4) If the Agency Head engages the person as an APS employee, the person must be: (a) engaged on the same basis (ongoing or non‑ongoing) as the person’s employment before resigning and at the same classification; and (b) assigned duties that are the same as, or similar to, the duties the person had immediately before the resignation or, if such duties are unavailable, other duties at the same classification; and (c) engaged on: (i) the same terms and conditions of employment that applied to the person when the person resigned; or (ii) if the remuneration, or another term or condition, applying to the person’s previous classification has changed since the person resigned—the changed terms and conditions. (5) The person’s continuity of service is taken not to have been broken by the period between the person’s resignation and the person’s re‑engagement as an APS employee, but that period does not count as service for the purposes of: (a) the National Employment Standards; or (b) an employment arrangement that applies to the person.