The Federal Employment Minister will be faced with worker troubles on his own doorstop, with industrial action given a green light.

The Fair Work Commission has given permission for Employment Department union members to give voice to their displeasure with stymied wage talks.

It comes after 90 per cent of Community and Public Sector Union members at the department supported taking action in a recent ballot.

The potential industrial action could be broad-ranging.

Work bans, stoppages and making clients aware of the situation are all measures that could be enacted.

Bargaining on pay deals for 160,000 Commonwealth public servants has been going since April 2014, with the agreements for more than 100 agencies having expired in June 2014.

There has been an impasse in the Employment Department’s talks since late 2014, when almost all staff – union and not - rejected a pay offer of a lowly 1.4 per cent for three years.

Even that bargain would have come at the cost of another 46 jobs and the traditional Christmas half-day.

“CPSU members aren't stupid and won't support agreements that leave them significantly worse off,” CPSU national secretary Nadine Flood told Fairfax media.

“Union members in agencies covering more than half of the public service have won – or are seeking – the right to take protected action against the government's attack on their pay, conditions and rights at work.

“Minister Abetz can no longer duck and dive on this issue.

“His unworkable bargaining policy narrowly defines productivity as cutting rights, conditions and hourly wages, which is making it impossible for agencies to put forward sensible agreements.”

Senator Abetz says low public service pay offers are in line with the need to cut debt levels.

He believes industrial action would be unhelpful.

“It would be a counterproductive exercise for the CPSU to organise industrial action in support of its claim for a 12 per cent pay rise, which is utterly unrealistic and would cost the jobs of 10,000 public servants,” Senator Abetz said in February.