Work culture cannot and will not be the same after COVID-19. It is a truism that is almost universally acknowledged. The question is: precisely how has it changed and what do organisations need to do to meet the new challenges? Several important answers are provided by the O.C. Tanner Institute, which has just released its …
Same-sex marriage is becoming the new norm in many areas of the world and accepted as something barely evoking any exceptional commentary. Symmetra lauds this progress as this indeed is to be welcomed. Citizens of Switzerland have just voted by a 64.1 per cent majority to legalise same sex marriage. Supporters of the forthcoming legislation say …
Recently a Symmetra post commented on “The Great Resignation” – a flood of employees leaving to seek greener pastures as the pandemic starts to ease. So how can organisations counteract this outflow which is clearly a result of long built-up dissatisfaction and disillusionment? What is it about an organisation which makes employees engaged, committed, loyal and …
Can we rely on scientific training to eliminate or at least reduce poor decisions resulting from unconscious bias? Apparently not. As our understanding of unconscious bias increases and deepens, we are learning two important things: firstly, that these biases intrude into areas that we might imagine as being insulated; secondly, we are understanding which sorts …
What happens when diverse and inclusive organisations decide on mandatory vaccinations for their workplace? Mandatory COVID-19 vaccination for employees is being adopted daily by more and more public sector agencies and private sector organisations. What should the approach be for an organisation which espouses diversity and inclusion but whose leadership considers that mandatory vaccination is …
Nations which suppress the rights of women are more likely to be failed states overall. The latest edition of the Economist magazine is one of great significance for women. Both the editorial and the lead article explore in-depth how nations which suppress the rights of women are more likely to be failed states overall. Naturally, recent …
WGEA has announced that 31st August is Equal Pay Day for 2021. This is the date on which the average wage for women In Australia reaches the level attained by men at the end of the past financial year. Put differently, Australian women need to work, on average for 14 months to accrue the same …
Symmetra is finding with its clients across the globe that many more are recognising the imperative to proactively address employees’ mental well-being- an obligation heightened by the pandemic. An OECD brief found that pre-COVID mental health conditions in 15 member-countries, including Australia, UK, New Zealand, and the USA, had been largely unchanged for decades. However, from March …
Women who complain that sexism, discrimination, casually dismissive attitudes towards females and victimisation are cultural, are often accused of paranoia or of having a fertile imagination. In fact, there is an abundance of evidence that many organisations simply overlook ´bad boy “behavior – or worse still, encourage it. California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing …
This week, like most Australians, I participated in the National Census. We were told that participating is an important part of telling Australia’s story. Yet the feelings I’m left with after completing the census is ‘this is not my Australia, or my reality’. As an Organisational Psychologist and an equity, diversity, and inclusion consultant at …