Equal Employment Opportunity Annual Report – 1997 Consultation

Informing Employees

During the year staff were informed about a range of EEO-related issues through the internal distribution of material, Bank publications, Bank training courses and local management discussions. EEO segments were included in the Induction, Supervision, and Management programs. Copies of the Bank's EEO Annual Report 1996 were distributed to all staff. Functional areas were asked to distribute their EEO plan to staff. Areas were also consulted on the content and format of the next EEO Plan.

Bank management and staff representatives also jointly participated in various committees which consider issues relevant to EEO. These include the EEO Policy Committee, the Grievance Authority, the Promotions Board of Review, the Officers' Superannuation Fund Board of Trustees, the Occupational Health and Safety Committee, and the Reserve Bank Health Fund.

Copies of two booklets on selection procedures and parental leave were updated during the year and made available to staff. They were also placed on the Bank's computer network for easy access by all staff. Planning is advanced for the inclusion of the Staff Handbook, containing employment conditions and practices, on the network.

Planning is advanced for the inclusion of the Bank's Staff Handbook, containing employment conditions & practices, on the computer network.

Throughout the year, individual staff members sought advice on issues such as flexible work arrangements, returning to work following parental leave, part-time work arrangements, training and development, age retirement, unfair treatment, and the recognition of same-sex partners.

The Health Centre in Head Office ran monthly health promotions and provided a range of information to staff and other Bank branches on health-related matters, including work and parenting issues. Information brochures are available in a variety of languages.

The Bank's staff information sheet, Staff Matters, is produced periodically and distributed to all employees. During the year, it included items on the EEO Annual Report 1996 and the appointment of Grievance Contact Officers. The Bank's monthly in-house staff magazine, Currency, also included items on a range of EEO-related issues, including an article on the pilot English language skills program and a profile of the EEO Policy Committee members.

At NPA, a weekly newssheet, Staffline, was distributed to all employees, keeping them abreast of the organisation's performance and a range of personnel-related matters. The Managing Director also held monthly staff meetings to discuss current issues and answer questions. In addition, a series of newssheets, called “Outsourcing Update”, has been issued to staff to advise them about a range of matters. A Manager's Handbook was made available to all managers on NPA's conditions of employment and practices. This was followed by training sessions for all managers which included content on NPA's EEO and sexual harassment policies.

A Manager's Handbook was made available to all managers on NPA's conditions of employment.

Contact was maintained with the Bank's trainees to provide support and to assist those from EEO groups with special needs. Follow-up interviews were also held with graduate recruits to identify any support required.

Personnel Policy Department maintained a collection of EEO resources for use by staff including videos and publications. A video on workplace harassment was used in several areas. Personnel Officers in Head Office met regularly to discuss current issues including the implementation of the new grievance procedures and the new personnel information system.

Consultation with Trade Unions

Throughout the year regular consultations with workplace unions occurred for the purposes of negotiating productivity bargaining agreements (PBAs) and advancing matters included in those agreements. The new PBAs are for two year periods and include a number of items of relevance to EEO, such as job sharing, work hour flexibility, performance pay arrangements, redundancy arrangements and appointments to new positions.

1997 Productivity Bargaining Agreements include a number of items of relevance to EEO, such as job sharing, work hour flexibility, performance pay arrangements, redundancy arrangements & appointments to new positions.

At NPA, the Strategic Action Council (SAC), with Senior Management, union and staff representation, met regularly until February to consider a range of strategic matters, including staff development and training issues. Union and staff representatives withdrew over an industrial issue, but it is intended to revive the SAC after the present downsizing program has been completed. On a number of occasions, members of NPA's Joint Union Working Group had the opportunity to meet members of the NPA Board to discuss matters of concern. The Joint Union/Management Consultative Committee met throughout the year to discuss a range of issues as the need arose.