The McGowan government is set to radically overhaul the public sector with the number of government departments slashed by almost half.
Premier Mark McGowan said on Friday the number of state departments would reduce from 41 down to 25 by July 1 in the "biggest shakeup of the public sector in decades."
He said the government hadn't ruled out more departments getting abolished or merging down the track.
The Premier refused to say how many jobs would be lost across the public sector, but took to Twitter before the press conference claiming there would be job losses.
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"Inevitably, over time, there will be public sector job losses but these will be approached in a managed, orderly and equitable way," he wrote.
"The potential job losses are a regrettable consequence of the financial mess and dysfunction left behind by the previous government."
There will be job losses within departments, but tough decisions have to be made. We're working with departments and public sector unions.
— Mark McGowan (@MarkMcGowanMP) April 28, 2017
The Premier said a number of department heads would learn their fate on Friday afternoon, with 20 per cent of jobs in the 521-member Senior Executive Service - WA's highest paid bureaucrats - to go.
Prior to the March election, Mr McGowan promised a $750 million slashing of the public service in an effort to get the budget back in to surplus.
He flagged more cuts with the net debt after it was revealed in April, net debt was expected to blowout to a whopping $43.2 billion by 2020.
"We are getting on with the job and delivering on our election commitment to drive real change across the public sector," Mr McGowan said.
"Under our changes, departments will work together to solve the problems confronting our state, by communicating in an effective manner to deliver for the community.
"This is the most significant reform of the public sector for a long time, we are not just changing the name on the door.
"I'm ushering in new leadership, new departmental mandates and new opportunities for the public sector to drive substantial long-term change and maximise each opportunity to deliver better services to the community."
Some of the changes will see the Department of Child Protection merged with the Department of Community Services and the Road Safety Commission amalgamating with the West Australian Police.