Sanction decision too harsh in all the circumstances 

The employee searched for their own personal data in the agency’s system to test how the system worked. There was no evidence of personal gain, and the employee was not aware that their actions were inappropriate or that they needed authorisation. The agency determined the employee’s conduct was in breach of the Code of Conduct and issued a sanction decision to reduce their classification. The MPC considered the sanction decision harsh. It was noted the agency permitted the applicant to continue to use the database for several months without telling the employee to cease the practice, which resulted in an additional breach. The MPC recommended that the sanction be varied to a fine and reprimand, which was, in our view, more proportionate and objectively more consistent with other sanctions imposed across similar APS agencies.