WorkSight Newsletter
December 2000

How do you reward your staff?

Many employers like to stick with the tried and tested standard employment conditions (4 weeks annual leave, 1-2 weeks sick leave, public holidays, overtime etc). However, increasing numbers of employers are looking into innovative ways to reward their staff which they hope will increase their staff's loyalty to their business.

Some of the recent non-standard employment conditions that have been introduced include:

Subsidised gym membership
Paid maternity leave
Free fruit
Massages at work
On-site health assessments
Free financial advice
Three month career breaks
Cash bonuses for good ideas
Time off for family or sporting activities
Pay increases in return for waste reduction
Carer's rooms for employee's children fitted out with work stations, toys and tv with earphones fitted out with work stations, toys and tv with earphones
Keep in touch programs when employees are on extended leave
Lunch time seminars on work and family issues
Additional leave for employees with good attendance records

Employers who introduce these practices are aiming to become 'employers of choice' ie. their employees want to work for them rather than regarding it as just a job.

If you are interested in developing innovative employment conditions contact WorkSight and we can advise on the options available to you.

What is sexual harassment?

Sexual harassment is :

Unwelcome behaviour of a sexual nature and it is reasonable in the circumstances that the person who was harassed felt offended, humiliated or intimidated.

Sexual harassment can include:

Pornographic pictures displayed in the workplace
Jokes of a sexual nature
Unwelcome physical contact
Leering, whistling, suggestive comments
Asking questions about sexual conduct
Comments about an individual's body, sexual behaviour or preference
Unwelcome physical contact
Sexual assaults
Obscene or offensive phone calls.

Every workplace should have a sexual harassment policy which sets out:

What sexual harassment is.
The employer's intolerance of sexual harassment.
The disciplinary steps which will be taken when sexual harassment occurs.
Procedures for dealing with complaints.

Not having the procedures in place to address problems when they arise can lead to problems being swept under the carpet because they are too hard or trying to develop a complaints procedure on the run. Develop a policy now so that if you do need it, it'll be there ready for you.

For further advice and information contact Siân Owen at WorkSight.

Annual average salaries

The annual average salary in Australia in the last financial year was $39,832 - over $5,000 more than in 1995/96 (when it was $34,582) and almost twice as much as in 1985/86 when it was $20,859.

What should you put on your pay slips?

The Workplace Relations Act sets out what Victorian employers should include on their employees' pay slips. If your employees are not covered by an award, certified agreement or an Australian Workplace Agreement (AWA) you must put the following information on the pay slip:

date of payment
period covered by that payment
number of hours or days worked by the employee during that pay period
all deductions from the employee's gross pay
any superannuation payments made on the employee's behalf
the employee's gross and net pay
how the pay is made up

If your employees are paid under an award, certified agreement or AWA you must also include the following information on the payslip:

name of the employee
classification of the employee
the date on which the payment is made
the days to which the payment relates
the ordinary hourly rate of pay (and, separately, any other hourly rate of pay eg overtime), the number of hours worked at that rate and the amount of pay made at that rate
if the employee is paid on an annual rate of pay, the rate as at the latest day to which the payment relates
any allowances paid
where deductions are made, details of all deductions and details of the fund or account they were paid into
where superannuation contributions have been made the name of the fund where the contributions were made.

You can't afford guess work

Increasingly individual employers have more flexibility when setting workplace conditions. However with this freedom comes more responsibility. Do you fully understand the options before your business or is it being left to guess work?

When it came to setting up your GST compliance system, you didn't leave it to chance. No, you consulted your business accountant. Similarly, you can't afford to rely on guess work when it comes to managing your most valuable resource - your staff.