THIRTY-NINE per cent of Australian workers believe their phone book, contact lists, business cards and files belong to them even when they leave their job, while 21 per cent would not hand them to a company officer even if asked.
THIRTY-NINE per cent of Australian workers believe their phone book, contact lists, business cards and files belong to them even when they leave their job, while 21 per cent would not hand them to a company officer even if asked. A survey of more than 1,200 workers also found that many make use of company property for their personal use, including:
Office supplies 25%
Photocopied files for future reference 20%
Magazines, books and newspapers 11%
The survey also found that 4 per cent of employees would remove information from the office if they needed to retain proof of dodgy activities, while 7 per cent would take information when they were leaving for a new place of employment.
Source: Talent2
Call centres on the recruitment ball
FIFTY-NINE per cent of call centre employees in Australia are recruited using systematic selection methods such as psychometric tests, aptitude tests and work sampling, according to a survey of 83 call centre and HR managers. It also found that absenteeism rates for call centre workers came in at 7 per cent, while the voluntary call centre turn- over rate dropped to 16 per cent from 26 per cent last year.
Source: Hallis/AGSM
VIC: Legal masters harass apprentices
FORTY-SEVEN per cent of law clerks in Victoria were harassed, bullied or intimidated in the workplace, while more than 60 per cent of clerks were asked to do non-legal administrative work, such as photocopying, filing, typing and making coffee. A survey of 265 clerks also found that they experienced:
Negative or unfair comments 23%
Workplace discrimination 25%
Physical intimidation or assault 7%
Source: Law Institute Victoria
Reference checking weeds out worries
SEVENTY-THREE per cent of HR professionals in the US believe that reference checking is effective in identifying poor performers, while nearly 40 per cent have increased the amount of time spent on reference checking potential employees over the last three years. A survey of 345 practitioners also found that 52 per cent of organisations outsource at least part of their reference checking or verification, while 54 per cent have policies of not providing employee references due to a fear of liability.
Source: Society for Human Resource Management
Employee information security a concern?
TWENTY-SEVEN per cent of HR professionals are extremely concerned about the security of company and employee information in the hands of third-party vendors, according to a survey of 310 American practitioners. It also found that 58 per cent were moderately to very concerned, while 14 per cent were unconcerned about the issue.
Source: Workforce
Business travellers on economy drive
NINETY-THREE per cent of business travellers use economy class for domestic travel, according to a survey of more than 1,200 Australians. However, 63 per cent use economy class for international travel while 61 per cent of business travellers use taxis to get from business meetings and the airport and only 3 per cent of organisations employ limousines for this purpose.
Source: Talent2
Public sector support for shared services
EIGHTY-FIVE per cent of public sector senior executives believe that shared services can play a role in supporting their organisations’ strategic goals, according to a global survey of 140 professionals across Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific region and Africa. It also found that 66 per cent of government executives had already implemented, or were in the process of implementing, shared services, while only 6 per cent of respondents said they would not even consider a shared services model.
Source: Accenture
Retrenched workers re-hired in talent war
AS A RESULT of talent shortages, 54 per cent of employers are at least occasionally hiring back former employees who were displaced by earlier downsizings, a US survey of 100 organisations has found. The reasons for hiring back former employees included:
Familiarity with work 52%
Minimising the risk of hiring bad employees 18%
Ensuring a good Cultural fit 18%
Additionally, the survey found the best way to have a ready pool of talent available is through investing in leadership development (81 per cent) and offering competitive salaries and benefits (64 per cent).
Source: Right Management Consultants
Victorian recruiters dodgy on discrimination
While 85 per cent of recruitment professionals in Victoria believe they have a good understanding of equal opportunity laws, around 75 per cent of all complaints to the Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria are in the area of employment. Additionally, 33 per cent said they sometimes ruled out candidates on the basis of age, sex and other factors, even though they knew this was against the law, while nearly half felt they would lose business to less-than-ethical competitors if they complied with the law.
Source: Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria
On-the-job training wins hands down
FORTY-TWO per cent of HR and finance managers believe on-the-job training is the most efficient learning process for employees, according to a global survey of 770 managers. The survey, which took in 150 Australian HR and finance managers, also found that other effective training methods include:
Face-to-face training 21%
Coaching/mentoring 15%
Trainee programs 1%
Source: Robert Half Finance & Accounting
