At the Department of Justice and Community Safety, we’re looking for people who want to make a difference. People who take pride in their work. People who get things done. People who are committed to making Victoria a safer place.

We embrace diversity and strive to have a workforce that reflects the community we serve. We’re all about recruiting the best people, regardless of gender, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation or cultural background. If you think you can do the job and would be a good fit for our department, we’d love to hear from you.

The department is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children and recognises that children’s rights need to be respected, their views welcomed and valued, and their concerns taken seriously and acted upon.

If you require adjustments to the recruitment and selection process, or require an alternative format to any of the application material, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the contact person listed on this ad.

For more information on working with us and our recruitment process, please visit justice.vic.gov.au/careers

We’re proud of the important work we do across Victoria. Want to be part of it?

• Utilise your Government expertise to provide support and advice to Corporate Services and Infrastructure
• Ongoing, Full-Time Opportunity to work with a high-performing and passionate team in the Victorian Public Service
• VPS Grade 5: $109,730 - $132,764 plus superannuation.

The Department of Justice and Community Safety is seeking a Principal Officer, Topical Requests and Consultation to provide a critical role within Corporate Services and Infrastructure

About the Business Unit

The Assurance directorate manages corporate policies for the department and its Ministers to ensure strong governance and service delivery. It is responsible for risk management, crisis and continuity management, internal and external audit, freedom of information, information privacy and information security. The Freedom of Information (FOI) Unit ensures the department is compliant with its obligations pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

About the Role

The Principal Officer, Topical FOI Requests and Consultation supports the FOI leadership team to manage the Topical team within the FOI Unit and works with other teams across the department and the Office of the Information Commissioner (OVIC) to manage significant and complex FOI requests to ensure compliance with the FOI Act. The role encompasses policy development, training, education and performance monitoring. The successful candidate is required to engage extensively with internal and external stakeholders and must have a comprehensive understanding of the FOI Act, along with outstanding organisational, analytical and written skills

Some of your duties will include:

• Lead and manage the Topicals team with FOI by providing guidance, training and monitoring development
• Manage and determine significant and complex FOI requests made to the department to ensure compliance with the FOI Act
• Identify and manage issues and risks and escalate issues to management as required

To learn more about this role before applying, please read the attached position description.

About you

To be successful in this role, you will have:

Technical Expertise

• Demonstrated understanding of and experience in government administrative procedures, practices, and good governance in the public sector, with specific knowledge of FOI and administrative law or legislation is required.
• Ability to effectively lead and manage teams to foster continuous improvement, promote teamwork, achieve outcomes, and meet performance targets.

How to Apply

Please click the Apply button on this advertisement. Applications should include a resume and covering letter. Attachments can be uploaded in .doc, .docx, .pdf, .txt or .rtf formats.

The successful candidate will be required to undergo pre-employment checks which may include national police checks and misconduct screening.

If you require adjustments to the recruitment and selection process, or require an alternative format to any of the application material, please don't hesitate to get in touch with the contact person listed on this ad.

FOR INTERNAL VPS EMPLOYEES: 

For all VPS employees, due to the new JSE policy, please apply through the JSE only to be considered for this position.

For this particular vacancy, priority consideration applies to Victorian Public Service (VPS) and select employees of the Victorian Public Sector who apply through the Jobs Skills Exchange (JSE) jobs board platform.

• For this particular vacancy, priority consideration applies to Victorian Public Service (VPS) and select employees of the Victorian Public Sector who apply through the Jobs Skills Exchange (JSE) jobs board platform.
• For all VPS employees, due to the new Jobs Skills Exchange (JSE) policy, please apply through the JSE to be eligible to be considered for this position in the first round.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

CHILD SAFE STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT:

The Department of Justice and Community Safety is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children and young people. We seek to prevent harm of any kind impacting children and young people and have zero tolerance for racism, child abuse and inequality. Children and young people's rights, relationships, identity, and culture must be recognised and respected, their voices heard, and their concerns acted upon. We aim to foster a culturally safe, child safe and child friendly environment for all children and young people we have contact with, deliver services to, or are impacted by our work.