Our People
Objectives
- Enhance organisational capability and capacity
- Foster an encouraging and rewarding work environment
Highlights
- Establishment of Staff Forum.
- Draft Values and Capabilities Framework developed.
- Overall staff numbers remain at consistent level.
- Consistent with APS trends, FSANZ’s age profile is increasing.
Performance
Our performance in meeting Our People goals is measured by:
- the extent to which strategic human resource management plans and policies facilitate achievement of organisational objectives;
- the number and nature of professional development opportunities given to staff as identified in staff professional development plans; and
- the nature of comments from staff surveys.
Overview
Last year we reported that, in common with most other departments and agencies within the Australian Public Service, FSANZ is changing. The State of the Service Report reflects an older, more senior, and more skilled profile. We have not avoided the demographic and structural changes being experienced across the whole public sector. The impact of these changes may not be felt as acutely in a small agency such as ours, but they do never the less, have significant workforce implications.
While FSANZ is a relatively young organisation with a median age of around 40, we also are not immune from the ‘ageing’ factor. Some 27% of our staff will be eligible for retirement in five years, with implications for a loss of corporate knowledge and managerial expertise, particularly in the non-science areas.
How do we attract, recruit and keep quality staff in a tight labour market? And how do we deal with skills shortages and the absence of depth at certain levels? As a science-based agency FSANZ (and its predecessors) has always had a strong scientific skills base. The challenge is to identify the skills needs of the future. Our planning forums during the year have identified, for example, the need to enhance and increase our skills base in the fields of economics, political science, social research and risk communication.
During the year we established a staff consultative forum – The Staff Forum – as a conduit to senior management on issues of interest and concern to staff. It is significant that the first issues to be addressed by this staff body is the development of a values and capability framework for the organisation that in turn will underpin our approach to learning and development, performance management and succession planning.
Organisational capability and capacity
Attraction, development and retention of an appropriately skilled workforce
Staff numbers and profile
There is continuing evidence of demographic and structural change within the Australian Public Service (APS). In 2003 the Australian Government’s Management Advisory Committee (MAC) noted that wider demographic trends, notably the ageing of the population and labour force, will impinge significantly on the APS as both an employer and a service provider. The APS State of the Service Report 2003-2004 shows that an older, more senior and more skilled profile of the public service has been emerging for some time now.
At end June 2005, FSANZ comprises 132 employees (105 ongoing and 27 non-ongoing). 121 work in Canberra and 10 in Wellington as at 30 June 2005. One member of staff is outposted to Tasmania.
Notes: Included in the above figures are 5 employees on long-term leave or undertaking non-ongoing movement to another agency.
Staffing numbers have remained remarkably stable over the last five years, as shown in Figure 1 below:
The median age of our staff remains at between 40 and 44 years. This is the same as in 2003-2004.
Academic Qualifications
As a professional, science-based agency, FSANZ maintains a highly qualified workforce. About 83% of staff (the same as in 2003-2004) hold academic qualifications in a range of science and non-science disciplines. Our scientific competencies include staff with qualifications in agriculture, biology, chemistry, environmental health, food technology, genetics, medical science, microbiology, molecular biology, nutrition, physiology, toxicology and virology.
Non-science disciplines are well represented with staff with qualifications in accountancy, business, communication, economics, law, public policy, social sciences, and finance.
A significant proportion of FSANZ staff (31%) hold post-graduate qualifications.
Some 73% of all staff have a Bachelor degree or higher qualification, while 74% of staff with Bachelor degrees or higher are held in science; 11% are held in social sciences and public policy; 5% in law and 9% in other disciplines.
Graduate recruitment
When circumstances have permitted, FSANZ has participated in the graduate placement program and recruited graduates under the G(APS) scheme. Graduate placements are an important feeder group for FSANZ, providing us with access to skilled staff. Due to financial constraints / budget priorities FSANZ was not in a position during the year to take on a graduate placement.
Workforce planning
FSANZ’s ability to maintain its highly skilled workforce and to ensure the recruitment, retention and training of competent and outward looking scientific staff will be critical to future operations. We are developing internal systems that allow us to monitor existing and future needs for scientific competencies and adjust our skills base, as necessary, over time.
Last year we noted the need to engage in more strategic systematic workforce planning if we are to effectively meet the challenges of the changing environment in which we have to operate. The need to identify our current and future capability requirements and implement an integrated human resource management strategy to ensure the required capabilities are met. It is particularly important that our workforce planning aligns the organisational skills base with our priorities and strategic objectives. Our planning forums have identified the need for an increased focus on our risk management capabilities, particularly in the areas of social and consumer research.
Mature aged workers
Some 42% of FSANZ staff are in the category of mature-aged workers (45 and over), a slight increase over the previous year (40%). Consistent with its ageing profile, the APS is increasingly reliant on mature-aged workers. Mature-aged workers have extensive experience, both within and external to the APS. The extent to which the retention of mature-aged workers is of significance to FSANZ will be addressed in the HR Strategy being developed.
Development of skills and systems to complement organisational capacity
Performance management
FSANZ’s performance management system is linked to organisational and business goals and the maintenance of APS Values. It provides employees with a statement of performance expectations and an opportunity to comment on those expectations.
We evaluate staff performance and development twice-yearly (mid-year and end-of-year) through the FSANZ performance management model – the Performance Enhancement Scheme (PES). All staff in the agency use the PES. Its importance is recognised in the Certified Agreement and specific policies govern its operation.
Despite previous attempts at reviewing the scheme, we recognise that there is scope for improvement in aligning the performance management system with agency goals and strategic priorities and by securing credibility through transparency, fairness and simplicity. We also recognise that the PES needs to be part of the overall management structure of the agency to ensure a clear understanding between staff responsibilities and the objectives of the organisation.
With this in mind the PES system is being reviewed by the Staff Forum as part of the process of developing an Integrated Values and Capability Framework for the agency. The review commenced in June 2005. We have also identified performance management as an issue in our 2005-2006 Strategic Plan.
Details of the performance measurement tools and the significance of performance in our integrated planning framework are reported in more detail in the section on Our Accountability.
Learning and development
Learning and development opportunities are an integral component of our PES. This process assists staff and managers to identify and deliver key training and development needs for all staff. We reported last year that, in light of the findings of the Strategic Review, and changing workforce needs identified by the Australian Public Service, we may need to review our approach to learning and development to ensure a greater focus on key requirements.
This review commenced during the year under the auspices of the work requested by The Staff Forum to develop an Integrated Values and Capability Framework. This, once developed, will provide the framework for our approach to learning and development and for succession management.
We need to make a significant effort to ensure that learning and development strategies are better aligned with the business needs identified in our planning documents. There needs to be a better alignment between the development needs of individual staff and the capability requirements of the agency as a whole. Currently learning and development needs appear to be most commonly identified at the work-unit level.
Currently, we lack a performance information system that enables us to analyse the level and cost of learning and development across the agency. As part of our performance enhancement measures for 2005-2006 we propose to implement a system that will allow us to explore trends and assess the value of programs.
Encouraging and rewarding work environment
Agreement making
The APS environment has, in recent years, provided a more flexible employment framework in which agencies can structure their workforce strategies. Certified Agreements and Australian Workplace Agreements made under the Workplace Relations Act 1996 enable workforce strategies to be tailored to develop capabilities and to address particular attraction and retention issues.
The Certified Agreement
FSANZ’s 2004-2007 Certified Agreement came into force on 29 July 2004 and has a nominal expiry date of 30 June 2007. The Agreement covers all staff other than Senior Executive Service and some senior management staff. The current s170 LJ Agreement provided for pay increases of 4.65% in each of the three years until June 2007 and provided a range of employment flexibilities around leave, part-time work, and home-based work and other family friendly policies. Improvements in pay and conditions are linked to organisational productivity and performance and are funded from within the agency’s budget.
Australian Workplace Agreements
28 senior staff (21% of total) have negotiated individual Australian Workplace Agreements (AWA) and are eligible for bonus payments depending on performance levels.This compares with 26 (20% of total staff) last year.
The Staff Forum
During the year, we established a new staff consultative committee, called the Staff Forum. It comprises staff representatives and operates as a consultative forum on issues and recommendations emanating from our ‘Expanding Our Capability’ initiative. It may also consider emerging issues of interest and concern to staff. The Executive is also represented on the committee.
The focus of the Staff Forum’s activities during the year has been the development of an Integrated Values and Capability Framework for the agency. We anticipate that the framework will guide the development of policies and procedures for our approach to learning and development, performance management, and for succession management.
Occupational Health and Safety
FSANZ’s Occupational Health and Safety Committee meets quarterly, or more often if necessary. All issues are considered and dealt with promptly. To date there are no outstanding issues.
There have been a total of six incidents since August 2004, five of which have submitted Comcare claims. Three of these have been determined as “Accepted liability”.
Commonwealth Disability Strategy
As a regulatory agency we are aware of our interaction with individuals and groups. FSANZ is committed to protecting, in collaboration with others, the health and safety of people in Australia and New Zealand through the maintenance of a safe food supply.
To ensure equity, FSANZ has established a consultative framework to communicate effectively with any individual or stakeholder group that wishes to provide input for their particular situation or view. To this end, FSANZ has specifically established a Maori Reference Group. Accessibility and open consultation is a major issue for consideration by FSANZ when it performs any of its functions.
In providing access to the public and stakeholder groups, FSANZ endeavours to be mindful of people with disabilities. As an example, redevelopment of the FSANZ website has ensured compliance with HREOC and W3C accessibility standards.
Assistance measures for staff
In keeping with our objective of providing a rewarding working environment we provide a number of assistance measures to staff. These are as diverse as support for eyesight testing and OH&S workplace assessments to problem resolution procedures and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
Flexible working patterns
As a ‘family friendly’ organisation, we have endeavoured to be responsive to employee needs and circumstances through the provision of flexible working arrangements. Staff may make part-time work arrangements, extend maternity leave on half pay and access the 48/52 provisions that allows for additional unpaid leave while averaging salary payments over the year. We have a high proportion of part-time staff and the importance of work/life balance is recognised through our support for flexible working arrangements.