A mass campaign by the NSW Police Association to recruit an extra 3,000 frontline officers could lead to dangers in terms of the quality of applicants and training, according to former justice and now inspector of the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) James Wood
A mass campaign by the NSW Police Association to recruit an extra 3,000 frontline officers could lead to dangers in terms of the quality of applicants and training, according to former justice and now inspector of the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) James Wood. Speaking before a NSW parliamentary inquiry, he said he was concerned about mass recruitment for the sake of numbers. “I really do think all recruits have to be carefully selected and should have some background of life experience beyond police services.” NSW Premier Morris Iemma also wants to recruit more police and has committed to an additional 750 officers.
Parental attitudes’ role in skill shortages
More than two-thirds of parents believe that Australians prefer their children to attend university or enter a white collar profession rather than develop a trade career, according to a survey from NRMA Insurance. Interestingly, the survey also indicated that NSW residents and high-income earners may be the greatest adversaries to trade careers with almost three-quarters of those surveyed agreeing that parents prefer their offspring to be part of a white collar workplace. This shift in thinking by baby boomer parents is a matter of great concern to the nation, according to Bernard Salt, KPMG partner and social researcher.
EI important in recruiting
It has been estimated that only 25 per cent of HR practitioners validly measure Emotional Intelligence (EI) when recruiting, according to Stephanie Dinnell, a psychologist with Drake International. “Assessing this important skill set is still rather undeveloped and under practised in Australia. While there are plenty of tools for indicating a person’s IQ or skill, some HR managers rely solely on gut instinct when it comes to measuring EI.” In contrast, 70 to 80 per cent of the top 500 companies in the US were believed to be undertaking some form of EI assessment or training by the end of 2002.
Opportunities for engineering services in emerging economies
Global spending on engineering services is large and rising, constituting about 2 per cent of global GDP, according to a recent study by Booz Allen Hamilton. As a result, the demand for engineering talent is growing, and emerging market countries such as India will play a vital role in expanding capacity, said Kevin Dehoff, vice president at Booz Allen. “This isn’t a case of substituting jobs in low cost countries for those in the developed world; these are core capabilities that provide a competitive advantage in the global marketplace.”
Women and workplace negotiation seminar
Effective negotiation skills have become an essential tool for women within the workplace. MacquarieUniversity will hold a seminar that will look at how women in today's employment environment can overcome their sense of vulnerability when it comes to seeking what they want. Presented by Mara Olekalns, professor in management (negotiations) from the Melbourne Business School, the seminar aims to help participants understand different gender styles of negotiation, identify and learn to overcome common mistakes made by women in negotiation and learn techniques to better manage emotion in negotiation. The one-day seminar will be held in Melbourne on 8 September and Sydney on 10 November. For more information visit www.lmsf.mq.edu.au/negotiation_hrm or send an email to [email protected].
Gauging the quality of work and life
The balance between work and life has come under increased scrutiny of late, with the ageing of the workforce, longer working hours and changing generational attitudes. DBa student Pieter Kriel is exploring the role of justice in determining quality of work life. Australia does not currently have a validated quality of work life index, and Kriel believes the research will assist HR practitioners in measuring and understanding the quality of work life within their own organisations. To participate in the survey, log on to www.pke.co.nz, follow the links, enter ‘qwl’ for a username and ‘survey’ for a password. The survey takes about five to eight minutes to complete.
