Recently, several members of the Centre for Transformative Work Design had an Away Day in the Swan Valley.
About ten months into our Centre's journey, the purpose of the day was to take some time to look at how we are working together, as well as engage in some planning about our research, impact, and dissemination activities.
It was a productive day, and enjoyable too. The sun was shining, and we enjoyed spotting kangaroos on the golf club from the workshop room.
One of the overarching research questions that we are trying to pursue here, at the Centre for Transformative Work Design is “Why poorly designed jobs continue to be prevalent, despite all the strong evidence we have about their negative outcomes for both employees and organisations?”
A recent opinion piece in New York Times hints towards one possible answer by highlighting the rebranding of poorly balanced work as a desirable lifestyle choice in certain industries. The article focuses on the highly competitive Silicon Valley and its culture of extreme workaholism, where “employees celebrate their own exploitation”.
The author describes this culture as a “commando lifestyle”, with extreme working hours (at least 18 hours per day) and focused solely on work with an aim to demonstrate full commitment and team spirit. Started in tech entrepreneurial circles, this culture is slowly seen to spread across other jobs and fields, casting a serious shadow on our hopes for better work in the near future.
Fortunately, the article also highlights the evidence around the pointlessness of such a working style as well as more successful approaches to work. However, the author is still pessimistic about what the future of working in tech, and not only, might entail.
For reading the full article, click here.
The Minister for Health, Hon. Roger Cook, visited the Centre for Transformative Work Design to announce an exciting partnership between the Centre and the WA Mental Health Commission (MHC).
The MHC has provided $500,000 to support the Centre's state-wide Thrive@Work Strategy. This strategy is about our Centre's vision for creating healthy and productive workplaces across WA.
The funding from the MHC will support the development of resources for organisations to make the workplace a thriving environment for workers.
The assessment tools, training modules, educational materials and other resources to be developed will assist workplaces in designing good work to promote positive mental health and wellbeing, and support employees with mental health issues and suicide prevention.
The funding will also support the implementation of the Western Australian Workplace Mental Health Standards, a set of voluntary guidelines for workplaces embarking on a journey towards becoming mentally healthy organisations. The development of the Standards was commissioned by the MHC and endorsed by the Ministerial Council for Suicide Prevention.
Mental Health Minister Roger Cook noted:
“This funding will assist the Centre to provide leadership and support to organisations throughout WA, to address the mental wellbeing and safety of their employees and create thriving workplaces.”
“With one in five of us experiencing mental health issues in any given year and the many hours we spend at work, it is critical that workplaces know how to create environments that help their employees thrive.”
“Creating thriving workplaces is good for employees, good for the wider community and importantly, can reduce the impact of lost productivity on business.”
For more information about the Thrive at Work Strategy, please contact Karina Jorritsma: karina.jorritsma@curtin.edu.au