Why you need to keep employees who experience the onset of disability

16/10/2017 0 Comments read Disability, Health & Science

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 16.10.2017 (HRM): People who experience the onset of disability through illness are often managed out of the workplace. But helping them to stay usefully employed can offer benefits on both sides.

While running down a steep hill in Oman, Mark Glascodine suddenly felt that he was not in full control of his body. It was 1992 and he was working for Shell. What followed was six months of inconclusive medical tests. He felt slight imbalance at times, but it did not impede his work as the depot manager. It took five years before a neurologist in Melbourne, where he was then posted, confirmed that he was suffering from Friedreich’s Ataxia, a rare genetic disability that affects one in 50,000 people.

At 32, it was deemed a late onset in his case, but his condition soon began to deteriorate. The Shell HR team explained to him about medical retirement, which he took in 2004. “They were being nice. It helped not having to sell my house and allowed me to retrain in career counselling for people with disability,” he says.

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Is this innovative program the best way to get skilled migrants into work?

14/07/2017 0 Comments read Features, Human Resource

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 14.07.2017 (HRM): Of the highly trained humanitarian skilled migrants entering Australia, few end up in jobs that make use of their skills. Some companies, however, are beginning to realise what they’re missing out on.

Rami Yousifani, a graduate in computer communications engineering from the Al-Mansour University College in Baghdad, arrived in Australia under the Special Humanitarian Program last September. Despite having in-demand skills, he was one of many skilled migrants almost certain of not finding employment.

“I didn’t have an Australian degree, local work experience or local references, which I was told were essential for getting a job. So, I decided to refine my communication skills and enrolled at an English language school, Navitas English in Fairfield,” says Yousifani.

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Business communication: How to say what you actually mean

09/09/2016 0 Comments read Business and Trade, Human Resource

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 09.09.2016 (HRM): Clear, compelling business communication is, sadly, a rarity. But master the art of the written word and see your credibility rise. Three experts give us their advice.

‘The medium is the message’ said media theorist Marshall McLuhan. Clear, concise and convincing writing is the key to driving home the message whether it is writing an email, a staff review, a project report or a business proposal. But in the world of 140-character Twitter and paperless offices, effective and persuasive business communication is found wanting – and human resources is among the worst culprits.

Stephanie Oley, who runs the business writing course at the University of Sydney, says, “The most effective business writing draws on the simplicity and directness of spoken English. This includes shorter sentences, less jargon and main points at the start of a sentence and not after lengthy background information.”

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