Victorian Premier Ben Carroll speaks to media during a press conference at Parliament House in Melbourne, Tuesday, August 25, 2026. (AAP Image/Joel Carrett) NO ARCHIVING
The Victorian State Labor government will axe 140 executive public service positions to save $100 million, promising that public-facing services will remain untouched.
The news comes a month after new Premier Ben Carroll, from Labor’s right faction, took over leadership from left-aligned Jacinta Allan.
The Victorian Labor government explained department budgets would be reduced proportionally to their size. The savings will not impact frontline workers, including nurses, police, and delivery staff.
“These are commonsense savings because we respect your money,” Treasurer Colin Brooks said (pdf).
“We’re reducing costs at the top so we can protect the frontline services you rely on.”
The Labor government noted Victorians were struggling with cost of living pressures and said the administration must follow suit.
As part of a recent cabinet reshuffle, new Premier Carroll also reduced the number of ministers from 22 to 20.
Parliament Targeted for $12 Million in Savings
Separately, the Department of Parliamentary Services will for the first time be required to meet the same annual efficiency dividend applied to other departments.
The department had previously been exempt from the savings target.
The government aims to secure $12 million in savings from parliament over the forward estimates by cutting non-core operations and discretionary services.
The Carroll government emphasised that the change will not affect the independence of parliament or core functions including committees.
Nearly 400,000 Public Servants
Victoria’s public sector workforce reached almost 394,000 people by June last year, equivalent to just over 322,000 full-time roles.
Opposition Calls for Executive Pay Cap
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has previously called for a cap on executive pay to restore financial discipline and address the tripling of Victorian Public Services executives.
“My team’s plan is about ensuring executive pay meets community expectations and that our priority remains on the essentials,” she said in April 2026.
However, she also announced on Aug. 19 plans to recruit 3,000 extra Victoria Police officers onto the public payroll.
