Asking for it? Practices and structures that perpetuate employee silence in pursuing customised work arrangements

A component of broader scholarship addressing the social context in which individuals work, has focused on the role of ‘employee voice’ in determining flexible-work outcomes (Donnelly et al., 2012). Employee voice incorporates a spectrum of practices designed to give employees a say in organisational decisions (Dundon et al., 2004). This paper extends work on voice and workplace flexibility in two ways. First, it focuses not simply on ‘voice’ but on its antithesis, employee silence, which is defined (following Van Dyne et al., 2003) as the intentional withholding of ideas and opinions. We utilise an alternative reading of silence to the majority of literature which interprets it as a product of employee motivation, by focusing on the role of management and by adopting a framework which considers silence as a control dialectic (Donaghey et al., 2011). Second, the study examines silence with respect to preferences for customising the terms/conditions of employment beyond narrowly defined notions of ‘flexible work’ (e.g., reduced hours; home-working). The study utilises 30 telephone interviews with employees who had been previously identified as ‘discontent non-requesters’ (Skinner and Pocock, 2011: 75), that is they had expressed a desire to request flexible working provisions, but had not done so. Interviewees were asked to articulate the reasons for, and consequences of, their silence. The findings reveal nuanced workplace practices and structures that close down possibilities for employee voice and perpetuate silence on matters relating to customising work. They also illustrate a disjuncture between espoused organizational goals and everyday practices and norms encountered in workplaces.

Work and the Welfare State : Street-Level Organizations and Workfare Politics

Work and the Welfare State places street-level organizations at the analytic center of welfare state politics, policy and management. This volume offers a critical examination of efforts to change the welfare state to a workfare state by looking at on-the-ground issues in six countries: the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.

Editorial : Global 21st century professionals : developing capability to work with Indigenous and other traditionally-oriented peoples

International agreement on the framework for protecting the rights of Indigenous populations within nation states has occurred alongside unprecedented levels of globalisation of other previously nation-based activities such as economic and social provision and planning. As the idea of the postcolonial democratic state emerges, this collection undertakes an international and comparative examination of the role of higher education in educating globally aware professionals who are able to work effectively and in cultural safety with Indigenous Peoples...

Networked identity work as project development among co-creative communities

Networked identity work is the conscious negotiation or co-creation of identity, enacted by speaking and listening across differences among multiple publics, including those real and imagined, familiar and unknown, on and offline, present and future. It is a concept I explore extensively in research with queer Digital Storytellers who share their personal stories in public places to catalyse social change (Vivienne 2013). In this article I consider distinctions between ‘story’ and ‘identity’; ‘networking’ and ‘networked identity work’ and argue that the two concepts may be usefully employed in development of co-creative community projects. Finally I consider how variable definitions of co-creativity influence project development.

Raising awareness of Australian Aboriginal peoples reality : Embedding Aboriginal knowledge in social work education through the use of field experiences

Effective social work practice with Aboriginal peoples and communities requires knowledge of operational communication skills and practice methods. In addition, there is also a need for practitioners to be aware of the history surrounding white engagement with Aboriginal communities and their cultures. Indeed, the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) acknowledges the importance of social workers practising cultural safety. Engendering knowledge of cultural safety for social work students is the opportunity to listen and talk with Aboriginal people who have experienced the destructive impacts of colonisation and the subsequent disruption to family and community. This article discusses the use of field experiences within a Masters of Social Work (Qualifying) Program (MSW) as an educational method aimed at increasing student awareness of contemporary Aboriginal issues and how to practice effectively and within a culturally safe manner.

Predictors of initiating and maintaining active commuting to work using transport and public health perspectives in Australia

Objective To identify predictors for initiating and maintaining active commuting (AC) to work following the 2003 Australia's Walk to Work Day (WTWD) campaign. Methods Pre- and post-campaign telephone surveys of a cohort of working age (18–65years) adults (n = 1100, 55% response rate). Two dependent campaign outcomes were assessed: initiating or maintaining AC (i.e., walk/cycle and public transport) on a single day (WTWD), and increasing or maintaining health-enhancing active commuting (HEAC) level (≥ 30min/day) in a usual week following WTWD campaign. Results A significant population-level increase in HEAC (3.9%) was observed (McNemar's χ2 = 6.53, p = 0.01) with 136 (19.0%) achieving HEAC at post campaign. High confidence in incorporating walking into commute, being active pre-campaign and younger age (< 46years) were positively associated with both outcomes. The utility of AC for avoiding parking hassles (AOR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.2–3.6), for less expense (AOR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.1–3.1), for increasing one's health (AOR = 2.5, 95% CI: 1.1–5.6) and for clean air (AOR = 2.2, 95% CI: 1.0–4.4) predicted HEAC outcome whereas avoiding the stress of driving (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI: 1.4–5.0) and the hassle of parking predicted the single-day AC. Conclusions Transportation interventions targeting parking and costs could be further enhanced by emphasizing health benefits of AC. AC was less likely to occur among inactive employees.

Effectiveness of pilot car operations in reducing speeds in a long-term rural highway work zone

Pilot cars are used in one-lane two-way work zones to guide traffic and keep their speeds within posted limits. While many studies have examined the effectiveness of measures to reduce vehicle speeds in work zones, little is known about the reductions achievable through the use of pilot cars. This paper examines the effectiveness of a pilot car in reducing travel speeds in a rural highway work zone in Queensland, Australia. Analysis of speed data covering a period of five days showed that a pilot car reduced average speeds at the treatment location, but not downstream. The proportion of vehicles speeding through the activity area was also reduced, particularly those traveling at 10 km/h or more above the posted limit. Motorists were more likely to speed during the day, under a 40 kh/h limit, when traffic volumes were higher and when there were fewer vehicles in the traffic stream. Medium vehicles were less likely to speed in the presence of a pilot car than light vehicles. To maximize these benefits, it is necessary to ensure that the pilot car itself is not speeding.

Investigating the individual and organisational predictors of work-related driving crash involvement in Ethiopia

The rate of road traffic injury and death in Ethiopia is at a critical level when compared to rates in high-income countries. Considering the enormity of this issue, research is to identify groups of high-risk road users and the factors contributing to their crash involvement. This study focuses on work-related drivers. This study explores driving behaviour as a mediator of the relationship between organisational and individual attribute factors and self-reported crashes in a sample of 213 work-related drivers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The hypothesised framework identifies driving behaviour as the most proximal determinant of self-reported crashes, and safety values, role overload and self-efficacy as antecedents of driving behaviour. With the exception of the relationship between self-efficacy and driving behaviour, all the hypothesised relationships were supported. We make recommendations for intervention approaches that are theoretically focused and sensitive to the cultural context.

Female game developers wanted low pay, long hours, inflexible work environments

Almost half of all game players are now women. However, women only represent a small proportion of game developers. There is a lack of previous research to suggest why women don't pursue careers in games and how we can attract more women to the industry. In this paper, we investigate the issues and barriers that prevent women from entering the games industry, as well as the solutions and steps that can be taken to attract more women to the industry. We draw on the lessons learned by the information technology industry and report on a program of events that was conducted at the Queensland University of Technology in 2011. These events provided some insight into the issues surrounding the lack of women in the games industry, as well as some initial steps that we can take as an industry to attract and support more female developers.

Access to commercial destinations within the neighbourhood and walking among Australian older adults

BACKGROUND: Physical activity, particularly walking, is greatly beneficial to health; yet a sizeable proportion of older adults are insufficiently active. The importance of built environment attributes for walking is known, but few studies of older adults have examined neighbourhood destinations and none have investigated access to specific, objectively-measured commercial destinations and walking. METHODS: We undertook a secondary analysis of data from the Western Australian state government's health surveillance survey for those aged 65--84 years and living in the Perth metropolitan region from 2003--2009 (n = 2,918). Individual-level road network service areas were generated at 400 m and 800 m distances, and the presence or absence of six commercial destination types within the neighbourhood service areas identified (food retail, general retail, medical care services, financial services, general services, and social infrastructure). Adjusted logistic regression models examined access to and mix of commercial destination types within neighbourhoods for associations with self-reported walking behaviour. RESULTS: On average, the sample was aged 72.9 years (SD = 5.4), and was predominantly female (55.9%) and married (62.0%). Overall, 66.2% reported some weekly walking and 30.8% reported sufficient walking (>=150 min/week). Older adults with access to general services within 400 m (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.07-1.66) and 800 m (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.02-1.42), and social infrastructure within 800 m (OR = 1.19, 95% CI = 1.01-1.40) were more likely to engage in some weekly walking. Access to medical care services within 400 m (OR = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.63-0.93) and 800 m (OR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.70-0.99) reduced the odds of sufficient walking. Access to food retail, general retail, financial services, and the mix of commercial destination types within the neighbourhood were all unrelated to walking. CONCLUSIONS: The types of neighbourhood commercial destinations that encourage older adults to walk appear to differ slightly from those reported for adult samples. Destinations that facilitate more social interaction, for example eating at a restaurant or church involvement, or provide opportunities for some incidental social contact, for example visiting the pharmacy or hairdresser, were the strongest predictors for walking among seniors in this study. This underscores the importance of planning neighbourhoods with proximate access to social infrastructure, and highlights the need to create residential environments that support activity across the life course.

The serious and playful work of gender : talk and social order in a preschool classroom

This chapter reports some observations made of the social interactions of girls and boys, aged 3 to 5 years, in play situations in a preschool classroom of a childcare centre. It provides an alternate framework for early childhood educators to become aware of how preschool children construct their gendered social organizations. As girls and boys organise and build their social worlds of play through their talk-in-interaction, they are building their social orders. In this chapter, an analysis of one episode of children's play has, as its focus , the methods that some girls and boys use in their talk and activity to make sense of their everyday interactions. The analysis of play shows the children's real life work of constructing and maintaining gendered social orders in their lived everyday social worlds. A close reading of the transcript of an episode illustrates how two girls turn they boys' masculine practices o ritualized threats into performance. By so doing, they show that while they know masculine discourse, and can perform it themselves, they do not actually 'own' it in the same way that the boys do. In this way, gender is established not as a social density but as a shaped dynamic practice that is ongoing, build by relational encounters and shaped by the collective performances of the participants.

Modifying behaviour to reduce over-speeding in work-related drivers : an objective approach

The goal of this study was to utilise an objective measurement tool, via an on-board Diagnostic tool (OBDII), to explore the effectiveness of a behaviour modification intervention designed to reduce over-speed violations in a group of work-related drivers. It was predicted that over-speed violations would be decreased following participation in a behaviour modification intervention where drivers received weekly feedback on their speeding performance and goal setting exercises. The final analysis included the on-road behaviour of 16 drivers, all of whom completed each stage of the intervention program. As predicted, over-speed violations significantly decreased from pre-test to post-test, after controlling for kilometres driven. These findings offer practical guidance for industry in developing interventions designed to improve work-related driving behaviour.

Expanded scope roles in primary health – what makes them work?

Introduction The demand for better integration between primary and secondary healthcare frequently leads to discussion about expanded scope of practice for nursing, paramedic and allied health professionals and the role these clinicians could play in facilitating improved access to timely and appropriate healthcare. From workforce perspective, expanded scope of practice has also been advocated as a mean of fostering workforce retention. Models of expanded scope roles in nursing and paramedicine have been trialled nationally and internationally in both acute and community care settings. Where they have been successful, trials have resulted in reduction in hospital presentation and admission; improved patient access and timeliness; and patient satisfaction. This paper will examine the characteristics of successful expanded scope programs. Method Exploratory case-study analysis of successful integration of expanded health care roles across primary healthcare settings in rural Australia. Results & Conclusions One size does not fill all. Successful models of integrated expanded health care roles in primary health care settings are built on stakeholder’s capacity and preference; community need; and political will. Collaborative, congruent, multi-disciplinary care teams that prioritise patient-centred care within a dynamic primary care setting have merit and are more likely to foster flexibility and sustainability.

Axial elongation associated with biomechanical factors during near work

Purpose: To investigate the changes occurring in the axial length, choroidal thickness and anterior biometrics of the eye during a 10 minute near task performed in downward gaze. Methods: Twenty young adult subjects (10 emmetropes and 10 myopes) participated in this study. To measure ocular biometrics in downward gaze, an optical biometer was inclined on a custom built, height and tilt adjustable table. Baseline measures were collected after each subject performed a distance primary gaze control task for 10 mins, to provide wash-out period for prior visual tasks before each of three different accommodation/gaze conditions. These other three conditions included a near task (2.5 D) in primary gaze, and a near (2.5 D) and a far (0 D) accommodative task in downward gaze (25°), all for 10 mins duration. Immediately after, and then 5 and 10 mins from the commencement of each trial, measurements of ocular biometrics (e.g. anterior biometrics, axial length, choroidal thickness and retinal thickness) were obtained. Results: Axial length increased with accommodation and was significantly greater for downward gaze with accommodation (mean change ± SD 23 ± 13 µm at 10 mins) compared to primary gaze with accommodation (mean change 8 ± 15 µm at 10 mins) (p < 0.05). A small amount of choroidal thinning was also found during accommodation that was statistically significant in downward gaze (13 ± 14 µm at 10 mins, p < 0.05). Accommodation in downward gaze also caused greater changes in anterior chamber depth and lens thickness compared to accommodation in primary gaze. Conclusion: Axial length, choroidal thickness and anterior eye biometrics change significantly during accommodation in downward gaze as a function of time. These changes appear to be due to the combined influence of biomechanical factors (i.e. extraocular muscle forces, ciliary muscle contraction) associated with near tasks in downward gaze.