ALBURY’S tax office workers face an anxious wait to find out whether theirs are among almost 3000 federal jobs that will be axed.
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Last night’s budget confirmed reports that 2954 jobs from the Australian Tax Office would go this year.
It is the largest reduction at any one agency to face the cull of 16,500 public sector jobs expected by 2016-17.
The member for Farrer, Sussan Ley, said she was committed to preserving the local jobs, but it was not for the government to dictate an external agency’s decisions.
“Obviously, I hope these reductions are not in regional Australia,” she said.
“I will be doing my best to ensure our local office stays strong,” she said.
“But I also recognise every public organisation has to do its bit.
“The cuts are for the tax office, it is not within the wherewithal of government to say what they are or aren’t allowed to do.”
The government has argued that 14,500 of the job cuts are the result of the Labor government’s 2013-14 budget and earlier policy decisions.
The tax office has 23,000 employees.