About us

Who we are

The Merit Protection Commissioner is an independent statutory office holder established under the Public Service Act 1999 and the Parliamentary Service Act 1999 to perform a range of employment related functions

Our role is to support agencies, departments and employees meet their responsibilities under the legislation and Australian Public Service (APS) and Parliamentary Service Employment Principles.  

What we do

We offer a fair, impartial and independent system of review to employees of the APS and Parliamentary Services on a range of actions, decisions and promotions. This Review of Actions scheme is an entitlement for employees employed under the Public Service Act and the Parliamentary Service Act.

We can investigate complaints about final entitlements and complaints about the handling of certain types of public interest disclosures. In some circumstances, we can conduct inquires into a public service action and investigate allegations of misconduct. 

We also offer services for employers to assist with their recruitment and selection processes and other employment related decisions.

Our legislation 

We operate under the Public Service Act, the Parliamentary Service Act, regulations and directions. We have a table that sets out which statutory authority applies for each of our statutory functions.      

Our structure

The Merit Protection Commissioner is supported by staff who are employees of the Australian Public Service Commission. Our organisational structure reflects the functions of the office. We have offices in both Sydney and Canberra. 

Access to information 

As an integrity agency we are committed to meeting our obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 and the Privacy Act 1988. We publish information on our website in accordance with our information publication plan. 

Contact us

It is easy to contact us about how we work and what we do.