MEDIA RELEASE
26th February 2009
Health care and aged care set to defy
employment trend, report finds
A snapshot survey of Australian business leaders finds health care and aged care sectors
likely to buck downward employment trend, other sectors still facing skilled worker
shortages.
One of the key challenges facing the health care industry is the continued shortage of qualified health care
professionals.
“This problem is not going away and will progressively get worse,” says Paul Murphy, General Manager of Holy Spirit
Care Services. “In the aged care sector it is no different, with the shortage of registered nurses remaining a key
operational constant. The challenge for organisations in our sector will be to restructure the delivery of care to operate
with less reliance on RN’s,” says Murphy.
Holy Spirit implemented a Union Collective Workplace Agreement in December 2008 with access to long service leave
after five years, the ability to cash in unused personal (sick) and annual leave, paid maternity leave and the ability to
salary package over $16000 per annum tax free. In addition, flexible work arrangements are in place.
Predictably, business leaders in other sectors expect cost cutting and downsizing to continue, but there is an upside for
small business employers wanting to take on staff, as explained by Lisa Messenger, Managing Director of Messenger
Publishing and Messenger Marketing,
“Since the economic crisis kicked in, my staff speak almost daily about friends who have been made redundant. It’s
very different now than it was a year ago when I had twelve staff, all Gen Y under the age of twenty-six and very
bolshy in terms of what they wanted. The loyalty wasn't necessarily there in an employees market. That was a more
uncertain time. I think 2009 holds us in good stead however salary increases may not happen as frequently as I would
like so staff will be rewarded in other ways,” says Messenger.
Author of the report, Sonya Melbourne of Brisbane-based change management consultants Astor Levin adds
“The report highlights that some sectors are still under-resourced and, in industries that have been badly impacted by
the slowdown, there is still a shortage of specialist skill sets.”
(ends)
About Astor Levin
Astor Levin Pty Ltd is a Brisbane based human resource and management consultancy firm that provides services to a
range of private and public sector clients throughout Australia. The team consists of highly qualified consultants with a
mixture of human resource management, business analysis and organisational psychology backgrounds with global
experience. Their client base ranges from small business to ASX200 companies.
For more information please contact David Bateson on 07 3901 1055 / 0402 332287.
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