The current APS bargaining model leaves individual agencies responsible for managing Part B negotiations, funding agreement outcomes and securing employee support.
HBA Consulting’s APS Agency Bargaining Strategy and Readiness Program converts whole-of-APS guidance into a practical plan for your agency.
We work with bargaining teams and executives to:
- Assess the agency-level cost and operational impact of emerging proposals;
- Identify credible productivity measures and affordability options;
- Develop bargaining priorities, limits and trade-off strategies;
- Test negotiation positions through realistic simulations;
- Prepare employee communications and ballot strategies; and
- Plan for payroll, policy and operational implementation.
The program is tailored to the agency’s workforce, operating environment, existing conditions and financial capacity. It is particularly suited to small and specialist agencies that cannot rely on scale or extensive Part B savings to absorb centrally negotiated costs.
Do not enter Part B bargaining with general guidance alone. Enter with a costed position, a clear mandate and a strategy your agency can implement.
Program Details
Move from central bargaining guidance to an agency-specific plan you can cost, negotiate and implement.
The program will focus on six practical outcomes:
Agency bargaining strategy
- Translate Part A and Part B parameters into the agency’s negotiating position.
- Identify priorities, concessions, limits and possible trade-offs.
- Develop an opening position, movement strategy and approval pathway.
- Prepare for union and IBR claims.
Affordability and productivity planning
- Model the agency-level effect of central proposals.
- Identify genuine productivity measures and sustainable cost offsets.
- Test proposed Part B changes for financial value, operational impact and industrial risk.
- Distinguish real savings from changes that merely transfer cost or create implementation problems.
Small-agency bargaining support
- Design strategies for agencies with few allowances, limited bespoke conditions and little budget flexibility.
- Identify options beyond reducing employee conditions.
- Help agencies demonstrate where centrally generated costs cannot reasonably be offset.
- Prepare evidence for discussions with portfolio departments, Finance or the APSC.
Bargaining-room capability
- Conduct realistic bargaining simulations.
- Practise responding to claims, objections and union narratives.
- Train participants to test proposals without prematurely committing the agency.
- Establish caucus, recordkeeping, authority and escalation arrangements.
Communication and ballot readiness
- Develop a communication narrative for both gains and trade-offs.
- Prepare FAQs, manager talking points, intranet content and employee briefings.
- Explain the agreement as a complete package without overstating or minimising changes.
- Prepare for employee resistance, misinformation and the possibility of a “no” vote.
Implementation readiness
- Identify payroll, policy, delegation, system and procedural changes.
- Develop an implementation plan before the agreement is finalised.
- Assess whether proposed clauses can be administered accurately.
- Prepare managers to apply new conditions consistently.
Delivery model
- A short pre-program agency diagnostic;
- One tailored workshop for the executive and bargaining team;
- One practical bargaining simulation;
- An agency-specific action and risk plan;
- Costing and trade-off templates;
- Tailored communication materials; and
- Confidential coaching during bargaining.
