Infrastructure Department Pays $5.39M in Staff Exits
Staff exit payouts rose 76.7 per cent in 2025-26 as the department's staff census showed worse results on nearly all key metrics.
Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in Remote Work
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The federal Infrastructure department paid about $5.39 million on staff exits in 2025-26, up 76.7 per cent from $3.05 million the previous year. The department offered 22 voluntary redundancies and accepted at least 15, costing about $2.5 million.
Why it matters
The rise in exit costs came alongside declining staff views of internal change and leadership direction, according to the department's staff census. The figures show the cost and workforce strain of the department's organisational change.
The department's staff exit bill rose 76.7 per cent over 2024-25, with 12 of the accepted redundancy recipients from the executive level. The Average Staffing Level dropped to 2172 from 2325, and the department expects a rebound to 2267 under the 2026-27 federal budget.
The players
Infrastructure Department (Australian Government)
The federal department responsible for national infrastructure policy, which paid the staff exit costs and conducted the staff census.
The details
The department offered voluntary redundancies to support organisational change and workforce needs, and accepted at least 15 of them at a combined cost of about $2.5 million. The 2026 staff census showed worse results on nearly all key performance metrics compared with 2025, including a fall of 8 percentage points in the SES articulation of department direction and priorities.
Timeline
2023-24: The department spent $857,000 on staff exit payouts.
2024-25: The department paid $3.05 million in staff exit payouts.
2025-26: The department paid about $5.39 million on staff exits and offered 22 voluntary redundancies.
2026: The staff census results were released showing worse performance metrics.
2026-27: The federal budget projects the Average Staffing Level to increase to 2267.
Roadmap
The department's staff census results form part of the annual Australian Public Service Employee Census trend tracking staff engagement and trust in leadership across federal agencies. The 2026 decline in trust and engagement, paired with higher exit costs, follows that tracked pattern of workforce strain during organisational change.
Large staff exit payouts draw on public funds and can signal organisational change affecting service delivery. Staff who remain report lower trust in leadership direction, which may affect how departmental programs are delivered to the public.
The takeaway
Public spending on workforce exits and staff engagement results are measurable indicators of how well a department manages change. Readers tracking government efficiency can compare these census figures across years to see whether trust and staffing levels recover.
What happens next
The department's Average Staffing Level is projected to rise to 2267 under the 2026-27 federal budget.
Further reading
For broader context on how workforce change is reshaping federal employment, see Remote Work coverage.
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