| Aussies Have an Eye on Teamwork |
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City Weekly Teamwork is proving a winner with employees, with a massive 88 per cent of Aussies preferring to work in a team rather than work alone. According to a survey by recruitment firm Talent2, 83 per cent of the 2403 respondents prefer to bounce off their mates in a work environment. The survey said males were more likely to enjoy working in a team than their female counterparts. Craig Sneesby of Talent2 says this is perhaps due to the sporting influence. "People like to see what their colleagues are doing," he says. "They like the constant challenges and the variety teamwork poses. And the great Aussie ethos of watching out for yourmates is still very prevalent in the workplace." Discrimination claims linked to WorkChoicesWorkplace complaints have risen by 70 per cent under the Sex Discrimination Act since the introduction of WorkChoices, according to the federal Human Rights and Equal OpportunityCommission. The commission's figures show that pregnancy-related complaints increased by a third between July and December 2006, in comparison to the same period in 2005. Victorian workplace rights advocate Tony Lawrence says he has also noticed an increase in the number of complaints, particularly from pregnant women. He said most related to organisations with less than 100 employees, which are now exempt from unfair dismissal laws. Industrial relations advocate Gary Pinchen, from A Whole New Approach, says he has been unable to take on all of the complaints from pregnant women. "We would get a valid inquiry every week. (Before WorkChoices) you'd be lucky to get a handful each year," he says. Great divide in perceptions of workplaceThere is a vast difference in how employees and employers view their workplace, according to a survey conducted by recruitment firm 1st Executive.Sixty-five per cent of employers claimed to have a work/life balance initiative in place, such as flexible hours, job sharing and increased family orientation. However, 74 per cent of employees wanted to see more of these measures, suggesting a difference in perception from their employers. Eighty nine per cent of managers said that they conduct performance appraisals at least every 12 months, yet 49 per cent of employees said they have not had such a review in that time.
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