CTWD moves to the city!

On Monday 5th of November, the Centre for Transformative Work Design celebrated its move to the heart of the historic Perth CBD with a launch event showcasing original artwork from our Artist in Residence this year, Lynne Chapman.

We were delighted and proud to share our sketches, stories and current research projects with colleagues, collaborators and friends.

The photos of the event reflect well the engaging and pleasant atmosphere of the evening.

We look forward to engaging with collaborators and the community to transform work and create better lives for workers, better outcomes for organisations and a better society for all. If you'd like more information about our research or are interested in collaborating with us, please email ctwd@curtin.edu.au.

Flexible working for job autonomy, well-being, retention and more

The Centre for Transformative Work Design recently partnered with a government organisation to investigate the effects of flexible working on employees. The organisation is undergoing planned change and wanted to determine whether flexible working would improve the work design, well-being, and retention of staff. Employees were given the opportunity to work from home for some days each week. We tracked participant responses across time and conducted more in-depth interviews to understand how flexible working impacted participants.

Our interviewees were particularly positive about the experience, citing improved autonomy, work/life balance, performance and concentration due to the ability to control work hours, eradicate stressful commutes, and avoid colleague disruptions. Despite geographical distance, effective communication was maintained in their team through the use of Skype and a pre-ordained day each week when all team members were in the office and meetings could occur. Importantly, participants reported being more likely to stay working for the organisation if flexible working was adopted permanently.

A recent study reported in the Financial Times online (Jun 28, 2018) concurs with our findings, observing that workplaces which did not offer flexible working risked losing employees, particularly mothers of young children and millennials. Moreover, a newly released government report (2018) into the future of work also supports this view, and highlights that flexible working is under-utilised by certain employee populations such as leaders, managers, and men. In particular, this report promotes the use of flexible working for people with disabilities who may face barriers to work.

While flexible working no doubt improves job autonomy for some people, we noted that it may not suit all workers in all job roles, including parents. Our interviewees believed that it may be difficult for those with children to work from home due to the short school day and the potential for constant interruptions. Manager – employee relations and communication may also suffer if managers and employees are less visible and available to each other, which may explain why the government report found flexible working to be under-utilised by this group. Finally, those who live alone may risk social isolation if they choose to work from home, which can impact psychological well-being.

In sum, if applied flexibly according to individual needs and desires, flexible working can offer many positive benefits for work design, well-being, performance and retention. In accordance with the government’s recommendations, smart organisations may wish to offer flexible working for a smarter, healthier, inclusive workforce.

References

De Vita, E. (Jun 28, 2018). Flexible working: here’s what employees want. FT.com; London

Our Sketches displayed at Thank you for Working in Aged Care Day

Aged Care workers do a fantastic job and are an integral part of our community. Unfortunately, they are often undervalued and unrecognised and that's why the organisation Our Turn to Care wanted to celebrate their hard work, to let them know they are appreciated and to say thank you for caring.

Last week we joined their vibrant event Thank You for Working in Aged Care at the Northbridge Piazza and it was a lovely surprise to see the aged care worker we featured in our Sketching Work Design project. Earlier this year, our Artist in Residence, Lynne Chapman sketched the Aged Care worker on the job and during our interview, when she shared some insights on why she chose this challenging career:

‘I do love caring for people, especially those in need... I have compassion to share. If you don’t care, it’s not good. In this job, you need to care. You need to look after the residents [in the way that] I want for me when I grow old’.

The sketches were on display at the event, giving the audience an authentic and artistic perspective on what it is like to work in aged care.

It was uplifting to see everyone having a great time dancing, chatting and celebrating at the event. The Premier, Mark McGowan was also in attendance and was very solicited for selfies and quick chats. Our 'star' carer was delighted by the festivities organised to honour her work and that of her peers.

Sky Rebbettes-Gordy from Our Turn to Care said:

"The sketches taken in action beautifully encapsulate the work that many aged care workers do on a daily basis that we want to showcase and celebrate."

From our perspective, it is rewarding to see our sketches serve such a noble cause and find an audience the sketches will resonate with.