Uncertainty over job loss numbers as TMAG faces staff cut

Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery facing job cuts, but minister unclear on number In short: Staff at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) say they were informed last week that nearly 20 full-time-equivalent jobs are on the chopping block, equating to about 30 per cent of the institution's workforce. The state government says the claims are "false", but concedes that there will be job cuts across the department overseeing TMAG, including at the gallery. What's next? The union says the government needs to be clear about where the jobs were coming from, and what the potential service reductions would be as a result. The state government has maintained Hobart's Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) is not cutting its workforce by 30 per cent, despite claims by the public sector union and the opposition. The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) said an online meeting was held last week, where staff were told that 19.7 full-time-equivalent jobs (FTE) would be cut by the end of the financial year. It is not clear whether the job cuts would be made through redundancies or natural attrition, or which roles could be affected. However, a government spokesperson has said the claim of nearly 20 FTE jobs was false, and that "TMAG is not required to reduce its workforce by 30 per cent". Tasmania's Deputy Premier Guy Barnett also denounced the claims as false, but said that "across government there need to be efficiencies". The exact size of TMAG's workforce is not publicly available, but the ABC understands it to be between 50 and 75 people. TMAG states it is Australia's second-oldest museum. It houses permanent exhibitions on the thylacine, Antarctica, Palawa history and culture, and Tasmanian plant and animal specimens. In addition to the main museum building in the Hobart city centre, TMAG also has a collections and research facility at Rosny. More than 280,000 visitors walked through TMAG's doors in 2024—25, of which half of them were from interstate and nearly a fifth from overseas. No clear number on job loss In question time on Tuesday, Labor MP Meg Brown asked about the CPSU's claim. "Minister, staff are saying one thing, and your government is saying another. What is actually going on at TMAG and exactly how many jobs will be cut at the end of this year?"she said. In his answer, Arts Minister Roger Jaensch noted there were job cuts across the department overseeing TMAG, including at the gallery. The former Department of State Growth is being reformed as Building Tasmania, and will slim its focus to infrastructure. As part of this move, 250 jobs will be lost. "This does not automatically translate to an automatic cut of 19 TMAG positions,"Mr Jaensch said. He did not say how many jobs would be cut at TMAG. A government spokesperson also could not confirm how many jobs had been cut from Building Tasmania as part of the changes. Staff cuts to have 'profound effect' In a letter to members last week, the union said "staff have a right to be angry" about the decision. Loading..."There is simply no way to soften the impact of what is being proposed," the letter reads. "These cuts will have a profound effect on staff, on the services TMAG delivers and on the preservation of Tasmania's cultural and scientific heritage." The union said the cuts were "impossible to reconcile" with "a government that repeatedly promotes tourism as a key economic driver". CPSU state secretary Thirza White said the government needed to be clear about where the jobs were coming from and what the resulting potential service reductions would be. "We know already that in the past six months there have been days when they haven't had enough staff to adequately open all of the galleries,"she said. Government cutting 250 jobs from former department The job cuts at TMAG come as the state government makes sweeping cuts to Tasmania's public service workforce in an attempt to get the budget under control. Treasurer Eric Abetz is eyeing 1,800 job cuts by 2032 to help curb state debt, which topped $6 billion this year. As part of the changes to Building Tasmania, TMAG will be overseen by a yet-to-be-established Tourism, Events and Creative entity within the Department of Premier and Cabinet. The latest job losses follow concerns the Rockliff government was underfunding creative sectors. This year, the state government cut several TAFE courses, including in apparel, fashion and textiles; screen and media; graphic design; and music. Subsidies for those courses were cut last October. Last year, a briefing to former arts minister Madeline Ogilvie warned that "dangerously low" funding levels had rendered the industry "highly vulnerable". The state government announced a $10 million creative industries fund in this year's state budget, with the money flowing to Screen Tasmania and Arts Tasmania. However, Screen Tasmania, the state agency responsible for funding and developing TV, film and games, has recently cut its number of staff from five to two.