“It has become increasingly difficult to make
In a world where smart phones and apps are evolving faster than you have time to update them, it’s important to take a moment to reflect on the potential for inadvertent disclosure and self-sabotage in the workplace.
Here are some issues to consider:
Dating apps in the workplace
Continue Reading Smartphone blunders in the workplace
As the Beliebers of Australia will tell you, tickets for Justin Bieber’s 2017 “Purpose World Tour” were released in Victoria on Wednesday, 12 October at precisely 1pm. In a frenzy, fans across Victoria were using their employer’s time and resources to purchase (or miss out on) tickets.
As society becomes increasingly digitalised, it’s now common for employees to use their employer’s internet access for non-work related purposes. Referred to as ‘cyber slacking’, can be a source of frustration for many employers who endeavour to limit recreational internet usage for staff. On the other hand, many employees feel that due to the increasing demands of work life, such as long hours and weekend work, personal internet usage ‘on the job’ should be accommodated. Is workplace flexibility just about leaving work 15 minutes early for an appointment, or does it include personal admin tasks that are done during working hours?
Continue Reading Managing personal admin during working hours: is it too late now to say sorry?
In the last five years, with the development of information technology and mobile devices, the distinction between being “at work” and “off work” has been profoundly altered. Working time is no longer confined to being in an office and working days are both more intense and infinitely extendable, making monitoring working times even more complex.
Coupled with a global economy, many employees feel that they are permanently connected to their work, irrespective of time zones and local laws.
Continue Reading Switching off: making sense of working time laws in Europe
Scott Morrison’s first Federal Budget announced the creation of the ‘Youth Jobs PaTH’ (Prepare-Trial-Hire) program – a program designed to encourage up to 120,000 unemployed youth into the workforce through skills training programs, paid internships and incentive payments for prospective employers. While further details will come to light over the course of the Federal Election campaign, employers who want to participate will need to look before they leap, to make sure their participation in the program doesn’t lead them, later on, to fall foul of the minimum wage provisions in awards and legislation.
Continue Reading Are you on the right path with interns?
When it comes to managing bullying in the workplace, the focus tends to be on dealing with the bullying behaviour after it has occurred or at least after the bully has started work. But are there ways to stop bullies from being recruited in the first place?
One place to start is screening during recruitment. There are certain personalities who deliberately inflict harm or lack the ability to understand the harm they are doing to others. These personalities fall within a category that psychologists call the ‘Dark Triad’ which comprises three sub-personalities: Machiavellianism, sub-clinical narcissism and sub-clinical psychopathy.
Continue Reading Screening for psychopaths – managing the front end of workplace bullying
So, your star employee has resigned. What happens next can be crucial for your brand.
The way a business responds to the resignation of a star employee is a touchstone of successful HR leadership. Employees, competitors, customers, and other key stakeholders (as well as your falling star) will be all eyes and ears about how you (HR) and senior management react to the news. HR 101 teaches us that recognising an employee’s decision to move on is part and parcel of business reality – but is there merit in leveraging the process further?
Continue Reading Breaking up is hard to do
Our blog on HR Now. The Big Issues has generated much discussion amongst our clients. They have told us about several other issues on their minds:
Continue Reading HR Now. More Big Issues…
Last year, we wrote about the 7 lessons for successful bargaining which highlighted that “tit for tat” communications rarely lead to a successful bargaining outcome. We regularly see that leading the communication agenda with employees is imperative in achieving any workplace change including enterprise bargaining.
Unfortunately, some union officials see enterprise bargaining as a fight between the union and the employer. Invariably the ‘campaign’ arrives. Flyers put a spin on what’s happening inside and outside the negotiation. Employers feel compelled to react and this plays into the ‘tit for tat’ game that the union thrives on.
Continue Reading Achieving change – active employee engagement is crucial