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What are you most grateful for in your recruitment career?
63 Plays4 days ago
Episode 93 has news for 16 December 2024 and Question of the week - What are you most grateful for in your recruitment career?
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Transcript
Bullhorn's Market Reach
00:00:08
Speaker
Hey Ross, did you know that Bullhorn has been servicing the recruitment market for over 20 years? I didn't Adele, that is a very solid history. With deep knowledge of the recruitment industry, it might surprise you to know that Bullhorn is built for startup and small businesses as much as it caters to large enterprise applications. If you haven't checked them out yet, we suggest you see how Bullhorn can transform your business big or small.
Australia's Employment Trends
00:00:36
Speaker
This is the news for the 16th of December, 2024. I'm Ross Clennett. Australia's unemployment rate fell to 3.9% in November, down from 4.1% in October. ABS data show the number of people in employment increased by 35,600, while the number of unemployed fell by 27,000 in seasonally adjusted terms. Full-time employment increased by 52,600 last month, while part-time employment fell by 17,000.
00:01:04
Speaker
The month on month jobs growth in November of 35,600 was 28% above the most recent 12 months monthly average. of $27,900.
Challenges in Economic Forecasting
00:01:15
Speaker
CBA economist Gareth Aird commented that it had become difficult to forecast the unemployment rate now because the usual economic laws didn't seem to be in play. Taking up face value, the data indicates that the labour market is not loosening despite world below trend GDP growth and forward indicators of labour demand all consistent with a softening labour market, he said. Oaken's law, which is an empirically observed relationship between unemployment and GDP, is not in play at the moment.
00:01:42
Speaker
and most economists are struggling to model and forecast the unemployment rate," aired concluded.
Legal Battles in Mining Sector
00:01:49
Speaker
Landmark class actions are being brought against two of Australia's largest mining companies in the federal court in Sydney. Lawyers expect thousands of other female workers to join the lawsuit which alleges widespread and systemic sexual harassment and gender discrimination at Rio Tinto and BHP work sites over the last two decades.
00:02:09
Speaker
Brisbane-based JGA Sadler lawyer lawyer Joshua Allwood said women alleged men would grope them and rub against them and were exposed to comments over the radio that were pornographic in nature. Allwood said he had spoken to hundreds of women in the past 18 months who were unable to work because of sustained sexual assaults and harassment whilst being at work. He said the two female lead applicants were very brave and that the legal firm had redacted their names and will ask for a suppression order because they fear retaliation from men on the sites. Many of the complaints have come from women and who work in outback areas as FIFO contractors and live in male-dominated camp-style accommodation for weeks at a time. A Rio Tinto spokesperson said the company was aware of the claim filed in court. A spokesperson for BHP said sexual harassment has no place in our workplaces or indeed anywhere
00:03:02
Speaker
and that the company is committed to providing a safe and respectful workplace for everyone.
Job Market Anomalies
00:03:07
Speaker
According to the JSA's Internet Vacancy Index, online job advertisements at the national level decreased in November by 1.9% month-on-month to standard 221,200. Over the year to November, online job ads decreased by 14.6%. Job ads fell across five states and territories over the month.
00:03:27
Speaker
The strongest decreases were recorded in WA down 4.7% and Victoria down 4.5%. Tasmania went against the national trend, recording a 5.5% increase in job ads in November. Ads decreased across most major occupation groups over the month. The strongest decreases were recorded for technicians and trade workers down by 4.9% followed by sales workers down by 4.7%.
00:03:53
Speaker
Seeks November employment report mirrored the JSA data reporting a 1.1% decline in job ads from October to November with the two largest state or territory falls also in WA and Victoria. Applications per job ad rose 3.4%, the largest increase since April and have now returned to the level they were just before the first COVID lockdowns began.
MCG Healthcare's Strategic Acquisition
00:04:17
Speaker
Talent solutions provider MCG Healthcare APAC has acquired Sydney-based Taylor Care Recruitment, a recruitment agency specialising in the permanent and fixed-term placement of social workers, counsellors, nurses, psychologists and care sector executives. MCG Healthcare APAC, part of the International OXO Group, launched in early 2024 under executive Paris Maton, currently provides staffing services in aged care, allied health, community services, social work and psychology.
00:04:48
Speaker
Taylor Care was founded in 2013 by Kate Taylor and Ryan Taylor, and currently has three employees. According to her LinkedIn profile, Kate Taylor is no longer with the business and is now the People and Culture Manager at Sydney Real Estate's Moreton property.
Economic Outlook and Business Optimism
00:05:05
Speaker
Deloitte's latest CFO sentiment shows that business opinion for the next 12 months is much stronger than the current economic conditions suggest.
00:05:14
Speaker
Net optimism about business prospects over the next 12 months has increased 65% up nine percentage points from the first half of this year. Net optimism about the economy also has also increased by 12 percentage points, reaching its first positive reading for two and a half years. Although net sentiment about the economy has improved, 68% of CFOs feel neutral about Australia's economic prospects, with only 18% explicitly optimistic.
00:05:41
Speaker
Economic risks have slipped further down the ranking with 45% of CFOs identifying an Australian economic downturn as a significant risk to their business, a dramatic 25 point decline from 70% just six months ago. As CFOs have become less pessimistic about external conditions, their focus is shifting inward with the two most significant business concerns of CFOs identified as inability to execute strategies and securing and retaining key talent.
Small Business Wage Code Concerns
00:06:12
Speaker
The SME community is still waiting for a voluntary code shielding small businesses from prosecution over wage underpayment to be released. Less than a month before wage theft is due to become a federal crime. Intentional wage underpayment is scheduled to become a criminal offence on January 1, 2025 as part of the federal government's closing loopholes industrial relations reform package. Companies will face criminal penalties of up to $7.8 million dollars with individuals liable for up to 10 years imprisonment.
00:06:42
Speaker
To protect small businesses that unintentionally underpay workers from criminal prosecution, the legislation includes the creation of a voluntary small business wage compliance code. If the fair work ombudsman is satisfied that a small business complies with conditions set out by the code, the FWO is directed not to refer the business for criminal prosecution. The code covering businesses with fewer than 15 employees is yet to be released by the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Murray Watt and must be declared by the Minister before the intentional wage underpayment can become a criminal offence. If the Code has not been declared before 1 January 2025, then the criminal provisions remain in limbo.
Parental Leave Discrimination Case
00:07:23
Speaker
A former Goldman Sachs employee who was fired after returning from paternity leave has won his sexual discrimination case. John Reeves, who'd been working for the firm since 2007, was told, you're a grown man. You can sort this out when he raised concerns with his bosses about struggling to manage his work-life balance. He was dismissed from his role as vice president within the firm's compliance department in London.
00:07:46
Speaker
after returning from six months of paternity leave in 2022. At a central London tribunal, he claimed the firm disapproved of male staff taking extended leave for childcare reasons. However, the bank argued he was dismissed because of long-standing performance issues.
00:08:02
Speaker
Reeves, who held positions at Goldman Sachs in the US and Australia before relocating to the UK in 2013, became a father for the first time in 2019. Ruling in favour of Mr Reeves, the tribunal found no attempt to be made to ensure a fair process was carried out before he was dismissed because of his sex.
00:08:19
Speaker
Commenting on the verdict Goldman Sachs said, the firm is deeply committed to supporting working parents with hundreds of Goldman Sachs fathers having taken up our market leading 26 weeks paid parental leave since it was introduced in 2019. We are carefully reviewing the judgment and the reasoning supporting its findings. A payout amount will be determined at a remedy hearing next year.
University's Wage Restitution
00:08:40
Speaker
The University of Melbourne has committed to paying over $72 million, dollars including superannuation and interest to more than 25,000 underpaid staff as part of an enforceable undertaking agreement with the Fair Work Ombudsman. Under the terms of the inre agreement, the University of Melbourne has acknowledged it has underpaid a range of entitlements owed under its enterprise agreements. Most of the underpayments relate to the university's routine failure to pay academic staff for many hours of marking, teaching and other associated academic work. Under the agreement, the University of Melbourne will also make a $600,000 contrition payment
00:09:16
Speaker
to the Commonwealth Consolidated Revenue Fund and implement various measures to prevent future non-compliance with workplace laws. Fair work ombudsman and a booth so the commitments secured under the enforceable undertaking would help to drive cultural change across the University of Melbourne and the wider university sector. Academics were often paid according to benchmarks such as words per hour or time per student rather than the actual hours they had worked.
00:09:43
Speaker
Booth said the University of Melbourne now accepts that for many years its casual academics are dear to benchmarks, which were inadequate and resulted in some employees not being paid for all hours worked.
Year-End Sign Off
00:09:54
Speaker
And that's the news for the 16th of December, 2024. I'm Adele Last. This is our last news podcast for 2024. If you are enjoying RNA, please give us a review or rating and use the break to catch up on any episodes you may have missed via our website at recruitmentnewsaustralia.com.au.
00:10:13
Speaker
We'll be back in late January with all the industry news and new questions to ponder in 2025. Thanks for your support and see you next year.
Career Reflections in Recruitment
00:10:30
Speaker
question of the week what are you grateful for in your recruitment career ade This is a very reflective one for this time of year. Good time to be thinking about what you're grateful for, I suppose. The thing that comes to mind when you ask me this question, Ross, is that I started in rec recruitment when I was reasonably young. You know, I was in my twenties and I'm grateful that I did it then because it took quite a bit of energy and focus and attention and I had the capacity to do that then. And I don't know, I would have the same energy and focus now.
00:11:06
Speaker
Um, just being older and, and, you know, tired and juggling more balls. So I'm glad that I started when I was young. Yeah. Well, I started at 22 and a half and definitely I needed the energy I had as a 20 something to, uh, to, to put in the way that I put in. Um, for you, what stands out? and Yeah, I think, look, overwhelmingly I'm just very grateful that overall I had really good bosses.
00:11:31
Speaker
And I mean, I've written about Greg, Greg Savage, um who most people listening to this would know. But in London, my first boss Kim was fantastic. I've got no doubt I would not.
00:11:44
Speaker
have been a recruiter if it had not been for her support. My next boss, Bridget, she was fantastic. In fact, I actually had a secret crush on her. but well yeah Confessions of a recruiter for a different time. Bridget was great. And then when I returned to Australia, Bronwyn, and I've written about her in a recent blog, the most emotionally intelligent leader I worked for, Bronwyn was fantastic to work for. And I just think across my recruitment career I was 14 years as an employee and I probably had 9 or 10 bosses and I only had two duds in that whole time and really I think that's pretty good to be able to say 75-80% of your bosses are good to really good to great and I'm
00:12:33
Speaker
Yeah, I'm very grateful for that because I suspect most people in their whole career, whether the recruiters or not, would probably not be able to have that level of hit rate with a great boss. You'd hope that our industry probably attracts people who are good people, oriented people, I suppose, as you know, good leaders. And that that makes me think of another one for me. I'm really grateful to the leaders that I had in my in my career that kind of created a path for me. I think of incidences where I had leaders who saw my potential before I was able to recognize it, or they could see things in me before I was able to identify them. And so, you know, I'm grateful that there were people that, you know, paid it forward, so to speak, and created that pathway for people coming behind them. So, you know, it's something I think about. And they may not even know that they did that. And that makes it even more... Okay, well name one. Name one. Come on. Say of course. I think about...
00:13:32
Speaker
I think about female leaders, I think there was there was certainly one manager I had early in my career, who and she was kind of two levels up from me, so she didn't directly I didn't directly report to her, but I would have interaction with her. you know She was a general manager. I reported to the to the branch manager, and she but she saw something. She saw something there really early, and she was really encouraging And, and kept telling me, you know, every time I kind of had a hesitation, she was like, You can do this. I've got faith in you. And her belief in me gave me the confidence I needed to then deliver what she was telling me I could do. And it was powerful. Yeah, that's, that's great. I'd say for me, the next thing would be I started and the job was really difficult. Like in London, you had to book interviews on the phone. There was no such thing as client visits. You weren't,
00:14:23
Speaker
sending resumes by post or career, you literally have to pick up the phone, speak to the hiring manager and put the candidate forward over the phone and the hiring manager would agree to interview the candidate. Like literally, that's the only way that you booked interviews. And if you were not successful at doing that, you did not survive as a recruiter.
00:14:46
Speaker
And so that was pretty intimidating for a 22-year-old in London, don't know anything about the geography of London. I don't know anything about accounting or the, um or even working in an office. And I still, to this day, not quite sure how I survived, but I did. And that stood me in good stead, because when I came back to Australia at the end of 1990, and I started work beginning of 91,
00:15:10
Speaker
That was Mr Keating's recession we had to have and it was really tough in Australia. So I had the resilience to just get on the phone every day and just call and call and call and call and not give up. And I think anyone who's had that experience of starting their recruitment career in a tough market will always look back and go, God, that was tough. But gee, I'm glad I had that grounding because it really helped me later on.
00:15:36
Speaker
Yeah, I think there was kind of, for me, a level of, you know, naiveness, nativity around what I didn't know. You know, you don't know what you don't know. And that was a good thing then, because you weren't as scared, you know, you couldn't, you couldn't see the the full, you know, road in front of you. And it didn't matter. And you just kind of plowed on anyway, even though there were probably some dangers there. And even though things are tough, or even though you got setbacks, you just kept going. And so, you know, being a bit kind of young and dumb in some way. Young and dumb, yes, that's right. It's not a bad, you know, I'm grateful, I'm grateful for that in that sense, that I was young enough and, and, you know, dumb enough, stupid enough to just keep going forward, even when, you know, I look back now and I'm like, it was pretty ballsy. There were some things I did that I don't know if I would even have the guts nowadays.
00:16:23
Speaker
Yeah, ignorance is bliss. It's a cliche, but it's but it's a cliche for a reason because it's broadly true. What else are you grateful for us? ah Just the quality of people generally. When I consider my whole 35 years in the industry, and I suppose specifically the 14 years that I was an employee, just the people who I'm still in contact with, who are still friends. I think of two people in particular who are Metis candidates, who I placed and have become very close friends and I'm still in contact with decades later.
00:16:59
Speaker
The people who at Recruitment Solutions and Temporary Solutions were part of what I would call a golden period, golden for years when the company grew from sort of 20 people to 70 or 80 people, just some fantastic quality people that I got to work with and got to know. I just, you know, I just think back with a great deal of fondness and feel blessed that I was in an environment where there were so many great
Building Long-Term Connections
00:17:29
Speaker
people. And again, it's only when you hear yeah
00:17:32
Speaker
as you get older, the experience of other people in your life and all the places they've worked to realize, well, it's not necessarily common. Some people have that experience of working with really great people for a long period of time, but not everyone does. So I feel very grateful for that.
Humorous Anecdotes in Recruitment
00:17:47
Speaker
Is this the point where I'm supposed to mention that there were some people you got to know a little too well that were candidates or...?
00:17:55
Speaker
ah Can I say no comment at hi he's taken the no comment? You guys decide whether he's allowed to do that one. If you don't know that story, go back and listen to previous podcasts you were talking about. I was young and unattached. That's all I'll say. er cool fair cool um but yeah you you You kind of make me think about you know a different time and a simpler time in some
Early Recruitment Practices
00:18:18
Speaker
ways. like I'm grateful I started recruitment you know back when I did in the you know late 90s and two thousand through the 2000s.
00:18:24
Speaker
It was kind of a simpler time in terms of the way we do what we do. There's so much that we've got now that certainly makes us more efficient and better and faster and, you know, all of these things. But recruitment used to just be about people. It really was. It was really just about building a network of people, connecting with people in a genuine way, you know, having a good client meeting that resulted in an honest relationship and work. You know, you used to be able to give your client a gift and they could accept it, you know, just little things like that. The niceties of the people interaction, ah ah what I'm grateful for in terms of having cut my teeth in that kind of market. ah Today, as I said, is is so different, and it's not better or worse. It's just different. um But it's, you know, it was so much more simple back then. Yeah, oh, there's absolutely no doubt. there There weren't a lot of things you had to think too much about, that's for sure.
00:19:16
Speaker
And I think kind of on a similar note, when I think that I started working for Greg at the beginning of 1991.
Influential Figures in the 90s Recruitment Scene
00:19:24
Speaker
the 90s were were an extraordinary period in the recruitment industry. Like there were so many big characters, Jeff Morgan, Andrew Banks, you know, Greg, ah Julia Ross was like that, that was her prime, um you know, guys names, the names of these companies were real people. That's what I don't think people realize, you know, Slade is Jeff Slade and, you know, Ross was Julia Ross and
00:19:52
Speaker
You know, even Hoban was Lynn Hoban. You know, these were real people who started these businesses. Yeah, completely. And ah John Plummer, who famously built CENTCOM, sold it for millions. John and I were on the NAPC.
00:20:07
Speaker
New South Wales committee and the NAPC was the forerunner to the RCSA. So yeah, just these what I would call pioneers. um Rosemary Scott would be another one. I got to know Rosemary very well. So all of these pioneers were people who when I was just this young 20 something, they were the big characters of the industry and I got, I certainly didn't get to know them all, but certainly I was you know, relatively close to all the action being in George Street, Sydney. And yeah it was just a fascinating perspective. Of course, you don't appreciate it at the time, but you look back now or certainly I look back down and go, wow, you know, it was kind of really a golden age.
00:20:51
Speaker
Yeah, it almost ah sounds like a reality TV show. That's right. They should make a reality TV show based on recruitment in the 90s. My God, that'd be great. All the big shoulder pads and the high heels and the ties, I can just see it. It'd be absolutely fantastic.
00:21:09
Speaker
um And my final thing is this kind of a little quirky, but when I arrived in London, I got a job as a recruiter straight away and I got a job in Sydney before I'd actually moved there and being a recruiter in those two fantastic cities was a great way to get to know the cities, you know, Where are candidates based? Where are clients based? How does a candidate get from this place to that place? So very quickly, I got to learn the geography of both cities. I got to learn the interesting parts of both cities, how to get around both cities, because both cities both occasions I did not have a car. I was relying on public transport. So that's kind of ah like a quirky thing that I'm grateful for. Well, I've got a quirky one, too. And mine is to actually say I'm grateful for Ben.
00:21:50
Speaker
And what I mean by that is I had a candidate very early in my career, may have even been one of the very first placements I made, a candidate called Ben, who wouldn't let me off the hook, I suppose. He he was really determined to make me help him. You know, he wanted to get a job in ah commercial real estate. He had no commercial real estate experience, but he met with me and we I interviewed him and, you know, I really connected with him and clicked, but I said to him, I can't help you, Ben. I don't work in that space. I was doing office support recruitment at the time.
00:22:21
Speaker
And I said, I don't know that I can help you. I don't have any clients in that space, but he wouldn't let me off the hook. He said to me, no, I believe you're going to help me. You're a good recruiter. You're going to find me a job. And I said, all right, well let me think about this a different way. And I asked him for a list of.
00:22:34
Speaker
companies that he wanted to work for. I said, Well, who would you work for if you wanted this job? And he gave me a list, and I i went through and and called them all. And, you know, one of them was Night Frank, and I contacted Night Frank, and I got him an interview and and, you know, floated him in on spec and got him an interview, and he got a job. And I'll never forget that. It was kind of like this, I guess it was that realization that I can do this, you know, I can, I can make a job of this, and I'm good at it. But it was actually thanks to Ben and him pushing me. So wherever you are, Ben, you're not listening to this, but thank you. Fabulous story. So, listener, what are you grateful for? Love to hear some comments about what you're grateful for in your recruitment career.