Tag: workplace relations advice (Page 4 of 5)

Good Workplace Law Advice QLD

December 20, 2012 / HRwisdom

At HRwisdom, as an advisory website that helps QLD businesses with staff and human resources issues, we have high standards when it comes to providers of good workplace law advice QLD.

This is particularly important when we continue to face ongoing changes to legislation that affects employment in QLD.

This includes pay and conditions, unfair dismissal, workplace health & safety, discrimination and other such areas.

[box type=”note”]Click here to get: QLD Employment Law Advice [/box]

Being well-organised and having good advice before things go wrong is the best way to manage any business.

Good Workplace Law Advice of QLD

The types of {problems|topics|issues} that {businesses|organisations|employers} in QLD regularly seek {trusted|expert|well-considered} advice on include:

{Handling|Managing|Dealing with} unfair and adverse action claims
Restraint of trade clauses
{Handling|Managing|Dealing with} under-performing employees
{Handling|Managing|Dealing with} workplace redundancies
Drafting of employment contracts
{Correctly following|Working with|Dealing with|Interpreting} awards
{Occupational|Workplace} health & safety incidents
Discrimination and {bullying|harassment} {claims|allegations}
Fair Work Ombudsman {issues|claims|investigations}
{Bargaining for|Negotiating|Establishing} enterprise agreements
Buying and selling {enterprises|businesses}
{Union official|Union representative|Union} right of entry
{Managing|Dealing with|Responding to} government inspectors
And other such legal issues

These are the types of {problems|issues|challenges|hurdles} that can seriously {impact on|affect|drag down} the performance, profitability, and {standing|reputation|well-being} of any {organisaation|business|employer}.

{HRwisdom|We} have been {fortunate|lucky} to find a selection|handful|number} of friendly and professional Workplace Law Advice firms that really know their {topics|stuff|area}.

One of the {big|main|key} things we {prefer|like} about these {law firms|firms|legal firms} is their focus on being {fast-moving|proactive} so that you can prevent {dramas|problems} before they arise.

This is important because unfair {termination|dismissal} claims, {hiring|employment} {documentation|contract} {disputes|arguments} and other such {problems|hassles} tend to {arise|appear} {just|right} when your {important|major|all-important} report is due or just as you’re about to give a {significant|major} {talk|briefing|presentation}.

[box type=”note”]Click here to get: Local Employment Law Advice [/box]

Having your {workplace|employment} systems and processes {assessed|audited} and {correctly|quickly|properly} in place is definitely the best way to prevent the majority of {employment|workplace} claims and disputes.

Good Workplace Law Advice in QLD

Whilst it is your choice which lawyer you use, HRwisdom trusts and enjoys dealing with these professional, pleasant and on the ball workplace legislation firms.

You can find their contact information right here:

Click here to see your: Workplace Law Advice” href=”https://hrwisdom.com.au/employment-lawyers/” target=”_blank”>Local Employment Law Experts

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Good Workplace Law Advice in QLD Related Video

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Regional New South Wales Useful Labour Market Information

December 19, 2012 / HRwisdom

The Australian Labour Market Report provides Labour Market Information for Regional New South Wales employers and introduces you to a handy range of information about the labour market, employment and training.

The area to download the report is below.

The report includes detailed workforce information about specific industries and all labour markets around Australia, including Regional New South Wales.

[box type=”note”]Click here to get: More HR Advice [/box]

In national terms, there are 19 broad industries in Australia. In employment terms, the largest are Health Care and Social Assistance, Retail Trade and Construction which each employ more than 1 million workers. Manufacturing is also a large employer, with almost 950 000. These four industries combined, employ two in every five Australian workers.

It is interesting that, although the Mining industry experienced the largest percentage rise in employment (75.5%), it had only the fourth largest number of new jobs and accounts for 2% of national employment.

Over a five year period, employment fell in Manufacturing, but there are still more people employed in Manufacturing than there are in the Arts and Recreation Services; Information Media and Telecommunications; Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services; and Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services industries combined. The decline in Manufacturing is part of a long-term trend reflecting structural adjustment in the Australian economy.

Useful Labour Market Information of Regional New South Wales

Many sectors, such as Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing; Mining; and Manufacturing create thousands of jobs in other industries, such as Transport, Postal and Warehousing; Professional, Scientific and Technical Services; and Construction.

Where are the new jobs?

Over the five year period, around 1.1 million jobs were created.
The largest growth was in:

Health Care and Social Assistance (up by 276,000)
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (122,300)
Education and Training (114,700)
Mining (102,900)
Construction (100,700)

Which industries had declining employment?

Employment declined in four industries over the five year period:

Manufacturing (down by 72,100)
Information Media and Telecommunications (46,800)
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (25,400)
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services (2600).

Which industries have the most jobs in regional locations?

Although Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing has the highest proportion of its employment in regional areas (87%), followed by Mining (61%), the largest numbers of jobs in regional Australia are in:

Health Care and Social Assistance (almost half a million)
Retail Trade (more than 470 000)
Construction (around 407 000).

Download The Australian Labour Market Report

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional New South Wales

Here is the link to download the Labour Market Report produced by the Australian Government, all you need to do is:

Click on the link below.
Come back to this page and use the orange form on the right to download over 40 free quality HR templates and reports.

[sociallocker id=”4427″] Labour Market Report [/sociallocker]

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional New South Wales Related Video

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQtKrzUg50U&w=480&h=385]

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Useful Labour Market Information Regional Northern Territory

December 18, 2012 / HRwisdom

The Australian Labour Market Report provides Labour Market Information for Regional Northern Territory businesses and introduces employers to a good range of facts about the labour market, employment and training.

The link to download the report is below.

The report includes detailed workforce information about specific industries and all labour markets around Australia, including Regional Northern Territory.

[box type=”note”]Click here to get: More HR Advice [/box]

Useful Labour Market Information of Regional Northern Territory

Many industries, such as Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing; Mining; and Manufacturing create thousands of jobs in other industries, such as Transport, Postal and Warehousing; Professional, Scientific and Technical Services; and Construction.

Where are the new jobs?

Over the five year period, around 1.1 million jobs were created.
The largest growth was in:

Health Care and Social Assistance (up by 276,000)
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (122,300)
Education and Training (114,700)
Mining (102,900)
Construction (100,700)

Which industries had declining employment?

Employment declined in four industries over the five year period:

Manufacturing (down by 72,100)
Information Media and Telecommunications (46,800)
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (25,400)
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services (2600).

Which industries have the most jobs in regional locations?

Although Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing has the highest proportion of its employment in regional areas (87%), followed by Mining (61%), the largest numbers of jobs in regional Australia are in:

Health Care and Social Assistance (almost half a million)
Retail Trade (more than 470 000)
Construction (around 407 000).

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional Northern Territory

Here is the link to download the Labour Market Report produced by the Australian Government, all you need to do is:

Click on the link below.
Come back to this page and use the orange form on the right to download over 40 free quality HR templates and reports.

[sociallocker id=”4427″] Labour Market Report [/sociallocker]

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional Northern Territory Related Video

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Written Warning Template for Australian Employers

Warning Letter Template For Australian Employers

December 17, 2012 / HRwisdom

If you are looking for a warning letter template for Australian employers to help manage an underperforming employee in your organisation, HRwisdom has one for you to download for free now.

You can buy HR documents here.

Whilst there is no legal requirement to provide formal written warnings, it is good business practice to do so. It will also strengthen your case should you ever be faced with a claim of unfair dismissal.

If it does go from underperforming or poor behaviour in the workplace through to termination and an unfair dismissal claim, the industrial commission will examine whether you warned the employee and provided a reasonable opportunity to improve their performance and conduct.

You should always seek expert advice in disciplinary matters because warnings may not be deemed appropriate in some cases of serious misconduct.

When disciplining an employee, the Australian Government recommends:

Clearly identifying the performance or conduct issue. This involves looking at how serious the problem is, how long it has existed and what actions you are going to take to address it.
Meet with the employee to identify and resolve issues before the situation becomes worse, clarify your expectations of the employee, and agree on solutions to improve the situation. During these discussions, it is very important that you do not set requirements or targets that are discriminatory, unlawful or otherwise unreasonable. Again, this is where professional legal advice is highly recommended.
Your disciplinary letter should include the details of the performance or conduct issue of concern, what has been discussed with the employee about the issue, what the employer will do to assist, an action plan of what steps the employee needs to take, and a reasonable time frame in which the changes or improvements need to occur.
Employees are not required by law to sign a copy of the letter.

Of course, regardless of how well your conduct your performance management process, the employee may still make an unfair dismissal or discrimination complaint or claim against you.

However, the better prepared you are and the more thorough you are in your processes, the better the chance of defeating the claim.

Warning Letter Template

If you would like to download a Government template for written warnings, click here:

Download Written Warning Notice Template

Good Interview Question 9

Q9. Tell us about a time when a customer’s deadline couldn’t be met. How did you break the news to the customer?

Delivering bad news to a customer is a very difficult thing to do. So listen carefully to the applicant’s answer to this question. It will give you insight into their attitude towards customers.

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

A good answer would be if they said that they had to deliver this bad news and they decided to drive out and tell the customer face to face. That’s obviously a better way to deliver bad news than just send an email for instance.

So listen behind the question to the attitude that the applicant has towards the customer and also, see if the were able to come up with some creative ways of delivering the bad news.

For instance, did they look for the previous ten orders and see that they’ve delivered nine orders ahead of schedule and this was the first one that was going to be behind schedule or something like that.

If they’ve got some sense of being able to balance the bad news with some good news, something like that.

Want More Good Interview Questions Right Now?

Stay tuned for the next question in our Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers series.

Can’t wait to see the rest of the questions and answers?
Like to know Robert’s thinking behind these questions and how they fit into the overall interview process?

You can download the full document via our HRwisdom Facebook page right now.

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Good Interview Question 9

Q9. Tell us about a time when a customer’s deadline couldn’t be met. How did you break the news to the customer?

Delivering bad news to a customer is a very difficult thing to do.

So listen carefully to the applicant’s answer to this question. It will give you insight into their attitude towards customers.

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

For instance, a good answer would be if they said that they had to deliver this bad news and they decided to drive out and tell the customer face to face. That’s obviously a better way to deliver bad news than just send an email for instance.

So listen behind the question to the attitude that the applicant has towards the customer and also, see if the were able to come up with some creative ways of delivering the bad news.

If they’ve got some sense of being able to balance the bad news with some good news, something like that.

Want More Good Interview Questions Right Now?

Stay tuned for the last question in our Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers series.

Can’t wait to see the rest of the questions and answers?
Like to know Robert’s thinking behind these questions and how they fit into the overall interview process?

You can download the full document right now.

[sociallocker id=”4428″]Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers You Want To Hear[/sociallocker]

Alternatively, sign-in or join using the Free HR Resources tab – it’s free and available now at: www.Facebook.com/HRwisdom

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Good Interview Question 8

Q8. Customers can be very demanding. Tell us about a time when you went the extra mile to satisfy a customer.

People who are in customer service roles go home at the end of the day absolutely exhausted because they spent the whole day trying to be nice to people and it’s a demanding job.

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

When people give you an answer to this question about going the extra mile, some people will talk about it with a smile on their face about how they stamped the back of a child’s hand or they offered a seat to an elderly customer or helped someone out with a large package to their car, something like that and they’ll tell you automatically how they went the extra mile.

But a lot of people in customer service won’t do that and they don’t do that.

So if you employ someone that can’t give you some stories about how they went the extra mile, when you’ll employ them, you’ll going to have to send them along to courses about how to be pleasant to customers, how to be nice on the telephone and things like that so they become an expense to your business.

So given a choice between two candidates, always go for the one who can tell you how they went the extra mile and they tell you that cheerfully and it’s just naturally.

It’s something they do that it comes from the heart.

Want More Good Interview Questions Right Now?

Stay tuned for the next question in our Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers series.

Can’t wait to see the rest of the questions and answers?
Like to know Robert’s thinking behind these questions and how they fit into the overall interview process?

You can download the full document via our HRwisdom Facebook page right now.

Just sign-in or join using the Free HR Resources tab – it’s free and available now at: www.Facebook.com/HRwisdom

By the way, we’d love it if you Like, Share or Tweet this blog post.

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The ‘Colourful’ HR Video We Were Too Scared To Show You

December 5, 2012 / HRwisdom

Recently, the HRwisdom Blog post examined an unusual publicity campaign called: Nothing HR Can’t Sort Out In The Morning.

Since posting the article, we have been contacted by the company involved and they have provided us with a copy of a ‘colourful’ HR video on the theme of Nothing HR Can’t Sort Out In The Morning.

We admit it. As an HR website, we are too scared to share this HR video with you here on the HRwisdom Blog (but we’ll show you where to see it).

The company behind the video (Strike) began by asking its fans for their worst experiences of an office Christmas party.

According to the company: “Almost all responses from people who had a Christmas party in their workplace, reported that the party had been pretty bad, and listed so many things that were absolutely cringe-worthy, things like the CEO’s wrestling with staff, songs running off an iPod on repeat all night, terrible food, warm beers. The responses kept coming in.”

Using these replies, the company and their agency Loud&Clear have recreated the most common or ridiculous responses, in a quick walk-through of a truly terrible Christmas party.

Think, The Office.

Due to the ‘colorful’ nature of the video (though probably still rated G), we were too scared to share the video with you here on the HRwisdom Blog.

However, we have posted the video straight onto the HRwisdom Facebook Page (just note this as our ‘Viewer Beware’ disclaimer).

Watch the video if you dare (we’ve also included details of the company’s giveaway of a party for one viewer and 25 of their colleagues to experience a Christmas party with a difference).

Don’t forget to Like the HRwisdom Facebook page.

Watch the video and hopefully you’ll see that it was nothing that H.R couldn’t sort out in the morning.

HRwisdom

Worrying Workplace Law Statistics Affecting Australian Employers

December 4, 2012 / HRwisdom

Today’s HRwisdom Blog post contains some very concerning workplace law statistics for any Australian business.

We also share advice on how to prevent these problems from happening to you.

The President of Fair Work Australia (FWA) is required by the Fair Work Act to provide regular updates to the Minister for Workplace Relations.

Worplace Law Report

The latest quarterly report covers July 2012 to September 2012 and, even though it was only a short time period, there are some concerning things to note.

Unfair Dismissal Concerns Affecting All Australian Employers

Has employing people become any less risky?

There were 3521 claims for unfair dismissal under s.394. Click to tweet this statistic.
On average, the unfair dismissal process took 162 days to resolve. Click to tweet this statistic.
Furthermore, there were 545 separate applications that related to small business employers.

How many claims were dismissed because the dismissal was a case of genuine redundancy? Three.

How many claims were dismissed because the dismissal was consistent with the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code? One.

How many unfair dismissal cases were settled without a decision being made? 3307.

Much as we hate it, the majority of employers know that unfair dismissal claims are usually settled ‘on the steps’ before it goes to court – even if the employee was terrible and the business did the right thing and followed due process. Unfortunately, it is purely a commercial decision,

That’s one big reason why you need to already know and trust good employment lawyers before something goes wrong.

Industrial Action (Strikes)

In the area of Protected Action and Industrial Action, there were 476 applications for protected ballot orders and 31 applications to get the protected industrial action period extended.

Union Right of Entry Into The Workplace

In the area of Union Right of Entry into the workplace, there were 489 applications for right of entry permits and 498 were actually issued.

Flexible Working Arrangements Disputes

On six occasions, Fair Work Australia was asked to deal with disputes between an employer and the organisation regarding the use of flexible working arrangements.

Enterprise Agreements

There were 2108 applications for the approval of enterprise agreements.

However, there were 93 applications for FWA to deal with bargaining disputes made under section 240.
In the area of General Protections – Compliance, there were 543 applications for FWA to deal with disputes made under section 365.
There were also 134 applications for FWA to deal with disputes made under section372.

Confused?

It’s a good reason to work out a game plan before these sorts of issues arise.

We recommend being proactive and making contact with good employment lawyers early.

By being proactive and having your legal advisors in place before anything goes wrong, you can often significantly reduce your risks.

By being proactive, you can quickly audit your current position on workplace law compliance.

You can then identify clear strategies and action plans to fill any gaps.

Workplace Law Recommendations

You can see our legal advice recommendations here:

Workplace Law Video

HRwisdom

How To Avoid The Nasty Side Of Employee Relations

November 30, 2012 / HRwisdom

Most people have seen the nasty side of employee relations gone wrong at work.

Examples include:

Being caught out by government inspectors for using an incorrect pay formula after misinterpreting an industrial pay award or agreement.
Underperforming staff members claiming “harassment” or “bullying” by their manager or supervisor who has been clumsy in their attempts to apply the company’s performance management policy.
Employees leaving the company and then poaching key staff.
Facing backpay claims by not being clear enough on the Employee vs Contractor issue.
Not having solid employment contracts in place.
Botching staff terminations and redundancies (creating a terrible working atmosphere for those who remain).
Not knowing how to handle unions in the workplace.
Discrimination claims made and eventually costing the business time and money.
Strikes or threatened industrial action poisoning a previously positive workplace relationship with the employees.

What Proactive Organisations Do

To save themselves the headache, proactive organisations tend to tick the following four items off the To Do list as soon as possible:

Have all employment law documentation (including HR policies, procedures, letters and forms) in place.
Train all staff in the existence and the proper use of these human resources documents.
Provide good employee relations training to all supervisors and managers.
Have independent legal advice assess the documentation, processes, training before, not after, things go wrong.

Smart businesses add a 5th item to their list . .

The 5th item is to keep up to date with good workplace legal advisors so the business is ready for any problem that may arise.

Download Free HR & Staff Management Documents

You can download free staff management documents and details of legal advisors on a regional basis here:

Click here: Employment law advice

HRwisdom

Tag: workplace relations advice (Page 4 of 5)

Good Workplace Law Advice QLD

Good Workplace Law Advice of QLD

Good Workplace Law Advice in QLD

Good Workplace Law Advice in QLD Related Video

Regional New South Wales Useful Labour Market Information

Useful Labour Market Information of Regional New South Wales

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional New South Wales

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional New South Wales Related Video

Useful Labour Market Information Regional Northern Territory

Useful Labour Market Information of Regional Northern Territory

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional Northern Territory

Useful Labour Market Information in Regional Northern Territory Related Video

Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers – Q9 – 2

Good Interview Question 9

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

Want More Good Interview Questions Right Now?

Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers – Q9

Good Interview Question 9

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

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Top 10 Interview Questions With Answers – Q8

Good Interview Question 8

Preferred Interview Answer – What You Want To Hear

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Worrying Workplace Law Statistics Affecting Australian Employers

Worplace Law Report

Unfair Dismissal Concerns Affecting All Australian Employers

Industrial Action (Strikes)

Union Right of Entry Into The Workplace

Flexible Working Arrangements Disputes

Enterprise Agreements

Confused?

Workplace Law Recommendations

Workplace Law Video