This is an unusual thing for me to do but under the circumstances, probably a necessity. The reason being that;
- EdConnect has no category for this type of complaint and
- There is too much information to permit submission via an online request. So reducing it to a URL makes that task a lot easier.
On the 9th of April ’23 I received this email from IDM_NoReply@det.nsw.edu.au informing me of the following. (see image) Under normal circumstances, and; if the information contained in the email was correct, there would be no problem. However, this mail notification is riddled with some serious errors that spell out loudly and clearly that certain processes within the DoE are basically up the creek.
I have been with the Dept of Education for over 27 years, (Visual Art, Photography & Visual Design). Of those, between 1997 and 2020 were as a full time member of staff. I retired from full time teaching in May 2020 after undergoing a quadruple bypass in December 2018. I retained my employment status (unbroken) with the Dept and have worked as a relief teacher on and off for the last 4 years. My DoE email address has been the same for the last 27 years.
Unravelling the mess.
“During your time as a casual staff member of the NSW Department of Education, an email account was provided to you for carrying out business related duties on the basis that it would expire fifteen months from the date of your last pay”
So firstly; no conditional email account was provided to me. I simply continued using the one I had been using for the last 23 years. In the email from the DoE (May 2020) notifying me of my “approval to teach’ as a relief / casual teacher no mention was made that my current email address would at any time expire under the conditions mentioned in the email in question. Had I been resigning from the DoE it would be a foregone conclusion that my DoE email would cease to be operational along with access to all other Departmental portals. However I have not resigned nor requested a separation from the DoE.
“Accordingly, you are notified that your email account will expire and be removed on 9 May 2024. Email accounts that remain active after a staff member has left an organisation create security risk that the Department is required to address under its Information Security Management System (ISMS) and obligations to the NSW Digital Information Security Policy (DISP).”
Now, 15 months from the 9th May 2024 is 9th Feb 2023. The problem here is that I was working at Nepean Creative and Performing Arts High School on a Permanent Part Time contract which I did not relinquish until 18th July 2023 due to complications from ‘SARS COV-2’ (infections x 2) and ‘Influenza A’ courtesy of my work environment.
” Email accounts that remain active after a staff member has left an organisation…….” What on earth are these people doing or not doing? as the case may be. All the correct information is available under ESS in the SAP Portal. The information there is populated by operatives within the DoE so how on God’s earth do mistakes such as are outlined in this post, come into being.
I offer two suggestions;
- People don’t know how to do their job
- AI assisted software is being used, in which case, heaven help us.
Given that I have not;
- Resigned from the DoE
- Applied for seperation
There is no justifiable reason to remove my current email and the contents thereof. To do so would also deny me access to all employee services to which I am still entitled until i do at some future date terminate my employment with the Department of Education.
For those in the Dept to whom this post is addressed, FYI, my last payslip is dated 04/01/24. For which I have screenshot and downloaded PDF. Which puts the conditional termination of my DoE email upon resigning (if no further relief work is undertaken) at 04/04/25.
Highlights of my working history with the Dept of Education can be viewed here;
Art + Photography 