People Dynamics Newsletter - People Matters
Issue 50, April 2009 | Back to Newsletters Index
PD News
People Matters has reached its 50th issue! It’s been both exciting and enjoyable to have been able to provide our readers with our monthly updates. We hope you had a relaxing Easter and have come back refreshed.
Recently we have made some changes to staff roles at PD. Shannon has increased her capacities and is now our HR Consultant and Emma is now our new HR Assistant. Congratulations to them both!
Salary Benchmarking
We now offer a salary benchmarking service and can provide you with up to date information on what the market is offering, customised for your business. Contact us for more information.
Mental Health
“Presenteeism” (employees operating below capacity due to illness) is costing Australia up to $25 billion dollars per year. Employees are afraid to loose their jobs so they come to work, however their productivity is substantially reduced. With the declining economy and many businesses and individuals finding the situation tough, there has been a new wave of awareness of Mental Health as an issue.
Employers need to provide a combination of a physical and psychologically healthy workplace, not just targeting absenteeism. It is about setting clear targets, achieving feasible goals and developing quality managers with excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Addressing ambiguity of roles and lowering stress levels for staff is also important.
It is also about providing the necessary resources for employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle. For instance offering memberships to gyms/health centres will improve the fitness levels of staff, which enables the them to stay focussed and alert for longer periods of time.
By addressing these issues, organisations are developing a culture of promoting a healthy and positive environment. Starting from reviewing processes and looking at promoting a enjoyable and dynamic workplace. Managers need to search for signs of strain through building a better communication with their staff.
Signs of depression include lack of sleep, withdrawal from social activities and personality changes.
“Not all there” HR Monthly April 2009
Legal Update
The Disability Discrimination and other Human Rights Legislation Amendment Bill 2008 will amend the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, the Age Discrimination Act 2004 and the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Act 1986. Some of the amendments include:
Making it clear that refusal to make reasonable adjustments for people with a disability may amount to discrimination.
Making it clear that the definition of disability includes genetic predisposition to a disability and behaviour that is a symptom or manifestation of a disability.