Workforce Management Plan

Financial considerations

Employment costs are estimated to account for 39% of our total draft estimated 2021/22 operating expenditure and have been developed under the following assumptions: • continuation of current agreed service levels for delivering outputs, functions and actions • a stable workforce number with no significant changes to functions and services • an annual turnover rate of between 10 and 15% • continued internal focus to develop and grow staff skills, experience and knowledge programs • minimal industrial activity • no significant labour policy changes • appropriate workforce and resources to complete the delivery program and operational plan actions • completion of asset management annual programs • using these assumptions, employment costs have been projected to support business as usual service delivery.

With 24% of Council employees aged 55 or over and long tenure we need to plan for impending liabilities associated with staff exiting the workforce. The Employee Leave Entitlements (ELE) liability as at 30 June 2020 was $14.5 million, which was an increase of $100,000 from the prior year. Council aims to hold over 30% in cash to satisfactorily fund this liability. We will continue to monitor the ELE over the coming years and will actively manage Council’s leave liability.

Ongoing capacity to fund rising employment costs will require a strategic approach that maximises revenue streams, reviews service provisions and models, and increases resource capabilities.

Increase in employee costs can be attributed to: • Local Government Award salary/wage and performance review increases • changes to employee leave entitlements • superannuation costs • workers compensation costs • staff training costs • other employment costs.

Employee costs Budget 2018/19 $’000 2019/20 $’000 2020/21 $’000 2021/22 $’000

58,700 58,700 59,500 60,495

A people culture

A strong, positive organisational culture will help us to achieve our community goals, as established through the Community Strategic Plan. We are committed to an engaged and community focused workforce that is geared towards excellence in service delivery while enhancing the customer experience. We proactively encourage a positive culture through engagement with staff and the community. Our organisational culture is underpinned by our mission and values.

The annual staff survey, ExChange Ideas, gauges the organisational climate and gives a voice to the satisfaction levels of our workforce. In 2020, with a staff response rate of approximately 80%, our results showed continued improvement in most areas comparative to similar surveys conducted since Council amalgamated. Engagement and progress indicators were 3% higher than in the previous year and are 2% and 11% higher respectively, when compared to industry.

Employee Engagement

Moderate/Strongly Disagree Agree/Strongly Agree

Organisational Progress

Analysing these results at an organisational and business unit level we continue to revise and develop programs and initiatives aimed at increasing employee engagement and driving a progressive workplace culture. These include:

• Performance Excellence Program: This focuses on continuous development and feedback and fosters performance excellence. The process involves continuous conversations with staff, building a culture of continuous, agile and transparent goal setting and continuous alignment of performance and behaviour with the values of the organisation.

• Rewards and Recognition Program: This acknowledges high achieving employees who go above and beyond in delivering outstanding customer service, work performance, innovation and demonstration of Council’s mission, vision and values. The program is driven by both people managers and amongst staff at a peer-to-peer level.

Service milestones are formally celebrated for 10 years of continuous service (including continuous service with the former Kogarah and Hurstville

City Councils) and every 5 years thereafter. This acknowledgement takes place at social events and is presented by the General Manager.

• Learning and Development Program: As learning needs and priorities change over time, several iterations of our learning program have been introduced including River Runs Deep (2017-18) followed by Ready, Set Grow (2019-20) which set the learning strategy for Council for the respective years to ensure our people are informed, adaptable and prepared with the skills and knowledge to effectively do their job both now and in the future.

Starting in 2021 the LEAP (Learn Exceed Achieve

Progress) program defines a new framework which encompasses Council’s holistic approach to building the capability of our people.

• Wellness and Belonging Program: In 2020, the

BENE-FIT 360 program was launched to actively support our employees from a holistic outlook for total wellbeing, including mental, physical and emotional wellbeing through a framework that is designed to promote complete workplace wellness.

The objective behind BENE-FIT 360 is to actively support our employees mental fitness, health and wellbeing to drive a healthier, happier and more engaged and productive workforce. Georges

Moderate/Strongly Disagree Agree/Strongly Agree

River Council is only as good as it’s people and by developing a mentally healthy, supportive and positive place to work, decreasing absenteeism and increasing presenteeism, not only will we get the best out of our staff, we will also attract and retain top talent further and promote Council as an employer of choice.

The framework consists of three overarching pillars: M-FIT - a commitment to a mentally fit workforce WELL-FIT - a commitment to wellness and belonging FLEX-FIT - a commitment to a flexible and agile workforce

• Diversity and Inclusion: We are a diverse workforce that reflects our contemporary, multicultural community. We celebrate and promote this diversity as a strength of our organisation. Our Equal

Employment Opportunity Diversity and Inclusion

Action Plan 2019 -2021 outlines the actions and goals our Diversity and Inclusion Committee and other teams at Council are working towards achieving.

We will continue to monitor our organisational culture and provide opportunities for staff to identify areas of concern and develop appropriately timed and targeted initiatives that improve employee performance and experiences.

Internal workforce challenges

A number of local constraints affect our workforce:

• Ageing workforce: 24% of our staff is 55 years or older, meaning a high number of staff will consider retirement in the next 10 years. This may result in staff and skills shortages and the need for more flexible working arrangements.

• Differing needs of a multigenerational workforce:

We have five generations in our workforce, each with unique traits that define them and influence their attitudes and expectations regarding their work.

Varying attitudes and expectations directly impact attraction and retention strategies that we must develop to build an agile and resilient long- term workforce.

• Trends towards limited tenure: Results from the most recent staff survey indicated that 31% of staff do not expect to still be working at Georges River

Council in the next five years, placing corporate knowledge, organisational capability and operational efficiency at risk.

• Skill gaps: Specific skill shortages have been identified in: - Strategic Planning and Community Engagement - Development Assessment and Compliance Services - Corporate Services - Children’s Services.

In general, the overall market for attracting professionals is increasingly competitive as councils seek to source employees with local government experience. While older workers may retire, younger employees may not have the acquired skills and experience necessary for promotion to senior and managerial roles, which indicates a need for ongoing succession planning.