Following months of consultation, the Federal Government has released draft legislation for its proposed paid parental leave scheme, set to commence on 1 January 2011.

The scheme will be funded by the Federal Government and in most cases will be administered by employers.

Mothers and other primary care givers who have been in the paid workforce and who have a baby or adopt a child will be entitled to a maximum of 18 weeks paid leave.

The leave will be paid at the National Minimum Wage – currently $543.78. The payments will be subject to income tax and there is no requirement for employers to pay superannuation.

To be entitled to paid parental leave an employee must demonstrate they have worked at least 330 hours for ten of the 13 months prior to the expected birth or adoption of the child; with a break of no greater than eight consecutive weeks between two consecutive work days.

To be eligible, an employee’s adjusted taxable income must also be less than $150,000 in the previous financial year, indexed in line with the baby bonus.

Employees may nominate the period over which they wish to receive their parental leave pay. However, parental leave pay must be taken over one continuous period.

During the period of paid parental leave, an employee may “keep in touch” with the workplace for up to ten days without losing parental leave pay.

CCI welcomes the decision by the Federal Government to phase in the role of employers in administering the scheme. The Family Assistance Office will administer the scheme for the first six months. Employers may opt to administer the scheme during this time.

However, from 1 July 2011 employers will be required to act as paymaster for eligible employees, where the employee has been employed with the same employer for at least 12 months at the expected birth date or adoption of the child.

Employees who qualify for paid parental leave, but have not worked for the same employer for 12 months will have their payments administered by the Family Assistance Office in all instances.

The Family Assistance Office will be responsible for receiving applications from workers and determining eligibility for the payments. Employers will not be required to make this assessment. Employers will not be required to make payments to employees until they have received the funds from the Family Assistance Office.

The requirement that employers administer the scheme adds an unnecessary administrative burden on business. Employers together with the claimant will be in a three way merry-go-round with the Family Assistance Office, assessing eligibility, exchanging information and waiting for the correct payment to be made.

CCI welcomes the decision to introduce paid parental leave in Australia but continues to support a system wholly administered by the Federal Government that does not result in additional administrative complexity for Australian business.

The Government has indicated that the legislation should pass through Parliament before the end of June this year. Once finalised, the bill will be subject to a senate hearing in May.

For further information on paid and unpaid parental leave please contact the Employee Relations Advice Centre on (08) 9365 7660 or email advice@cciwa.com.

The Safe Work Australia Awards acknowledge excellence in work health and safety and recognise organisations and individuals who demonstrate leadership and innovation in their workplace

CCI was pleased to attend the presentation ceremony at Parliament House in Canberra on 28 April and participate on the judging panel for Western Australian winners.

In particular CCI congratulates Joondalup Lotteries House Inc for being highly commended in Category 3: Best Workplace Health and Safety Practice/s in Small Business.

Joondalup Lotteries House was constructed with a Lotterywest grant in 1999. It supplies low-cost office accommodation to not-for-profit organisations that provide services to Perth’s northern suburbs.

The organisation established a comprehensive health and safety management system involving all organisations using house accommodation.

The following lists winners in the four categories:

Category 1: Best Workplace Health and Safety Management System

Winner (Private Sector): GHD

Winner (Public Sector): Australian Institute of Marine Science

Category 2: Best Solution to an Identified Workplace Health and Safety Issue

Winner: Australian Air Express

Highly commended: Frook Pty Ltd

Highly commended: Fosters
Coonawarra Vineyard

Category 3: Best Workplace Health and Safety Practice/s in Small Business

Winner: IFE Forklifts 

Highly commended: Woodrising Farm

Highly commended: Joondalup Lotteries House Inc

Category 4: Best Individual Contribution to Workplace Health and Safety

Category 4(a) An employee who does not have formal responsibility for OHS management

Winner: Nicola Featherstone

Highly commended: Phyl Hilton

Category 4(b) An outstanding contribution by an OHS manager or person with OHS responsibility

Winner: Glyn Williams

The model Work Health and Safety Act provisions were endorsed by the majority of members of Safe Work Australia at its recent meeting on 28 April 2010.

An outstanding matter on the application of duties to partnerships was subsequently resolved by the Significant Issues Group on Occupational Health and Safety and the jurisdictions began the process of adoption.

As a matter of course the Act provisions will go to the next meeting of the Workplace Relations Ministerial Council for noting.

In Western Australia the Commission for Occupational Safety and Health will consider the Act provisions and provide advice to the Minister on the detail of its adoption. The Western Australian Government is committed to national harmonisation of occupational health and safety legislation although not all of the components of the model Act will be adopted.

An issue of concern to Safe Work Australia and industry is the way partnerships are treated under the model Act. The Act imposes duties on the person conducting the business or undertaking (PCBU), officers, workers, volunteers and other persons such as manufacturers and suppliers.

Of particular interest are the duties on the person conducting the business or undertaking. In the case of an incorporated body the duty rests with the entity. The officers of the incorporated bodies including board members and the chief executive will be subject to officer duties.

A partnership is not a legal entity, therefore the high level duties applying to incorporated bodies can not be applied to the partnership. The majority decision of Safe Work Australia is to apply the higher level PCBU duties to the partners of the partnership. The partners will be subject to officer penalties including a lower monetary penalty and imprisonment. The penalty of imprisonment cannot apply to an entity.

In considering the matter Safe Work Australia was informed that a partner or partners being liable for PCBU duties is consistent with the common law position that each partner is jointly and severally liable for the acts/omissions of the partnership. To avoid double jeopardy, individual partners will not be subject to officer duties.

Partnerships are generally small operations and frequently family run businesses. The debate on how to treat partnerships under the model Act was a difficult one for Safe Work Australia. Unless public interest is such that the decision is reviewed by Safe Work Australia or individual jurisdictions, the higher duties on partners will remain. The key concern with the approach is that individual partners of a partnership will be subject to higher level duties than the most senior officer of very large organisations.

Unincorporated associations are treated differently. Like partnerships an unincorporated association is not a legal entity. The Act imposes PCBU duties on associations however an unincorporated association is not liable for a breach of a PCBU duty. Any action brought against the unincorporated association will be brought against an officer of an unincorporated association under officer duties. Action may also be brought against the individual members of an unincorporated association under the provisions of the Act that impose duties on workers and other persons at the workplace.

Safe Work Australia is developing supporting regulations that are expected to be available for public comments towards the end of 2010.

Fall prevention in the agricultural sector

The agricultural sector remains one of the highest risk industries in WA and Australia as a whole. WorkSafe WA has developed a draft guidance note for employers to reduce or prevent falls in the agricultural industry as one person each week in the industry will need to take time off work because of a work-related fall.

CCI members are encouraged to review this draft guidance note and provide us with feedback on how this will affect you and your employees in the workplace. Please contact CCI on (08) 9365 7577 with your comments.

Workers’ compensation premium renewals

The large majority of WA employers renew their workers’ compensation insurance on 30 June each year. Your insurance premiums are a reflection of how well you get your employees back to work, how well you manage the employee’s medical treatment and how your insurance company manages the claim.

It was announced that WA’s workers’ compensation premiums will reduce on the assumption that the state wage roll will increase along with returns on investments. Employers should be aware that the cost of common law claims has increased and disputes are taking over six months to be determined on average.

If you need advice about improving your workers’ compensation performance and obtaining a premium that is accurate to the cost of your organisation, please contact CCI.

OSH harmonisation update

CCI continues to vigorously represent employer interests while the draft bill, regulations and codes of practices are in development.

It is anticipated that the draft legislation will be available for public comment this year, however CCI still maintains concerns on increased fines for employers and individuals; the powers of health and safety representatives to stop work; right of entry; and a reversal of the onus of proof in relation to discrimination issues (ie employers would have to prove that their actions/conduct were not discriminatory).

CCI encourages employers to implement effective safety management systems as soon as possible in order to manage the risk that supervisors, managers and directors are likely to face under the regime.

If you don’t have a safety management system or are a small employer
with around 20 employees, contact CCI for assistance.

The State Government has handed down a safe budget centred on responsible financial management, but there remains much unfinished business to build on the State's success.

CCI welcomes the Government’s efforts to lay a foundation to address budget pressures which have been mounting as a result of years of unsustainable growth in spending. Initiatives to reduce spending growth such as 700 voluntary public sector redundancies, a clamp on wages and a cap on full time public sector employees are welcome.

It is a budget that will help the State retain its AAA credit rating. While net debt is growing, it remains manageable and is the result of new investment in critical social and economic infrastructure that will have long term benefits for the State.

Funding commitments for Pilbara Cities, Ord River, Oakajee, City Link and the Browse LNG precinct are welcome. However, it is disappointing that once again there is no money to build a new multi-purpose outdoor stadium.

CCI welcomes the decision to provide $19 million dollars to create 7,600 additional training places, and $3 million over two years to provide a cash bonus to employers that take on out-of-contract apprentices and trainees. This is an important investment in the State’s future.

CCI is pleased the Government recognises the need to ensure there is enough land and housing for the State’s growing population. The creation of a new Office of Land and Housing Supply has the important task of making this happen.

However, there is more the Government can do to help local employers and the economy.

The Government’s Economic Audit Committee recommended ways to run the public sector more efficiently months ago. However, the majority of its findings are yet to be acted on.

The Budget figures show that it is the hard work of local employers across the State, through the taxes they pay, that is keeping the Budget in the black. The Government can not rely on a high tax burden to prop up their finances. Easing the tax burden will remove a barrier faced by employers to grow their business, invest in the State and create jobs.

While CCI recognises the need to support regional communities through improved social and economic infrastructure, it is important that the Royalties for Regions scheme delivers maximum benefit to taxpayers. CCI is concerned that $435 million has been set aside for local governments across the State without any need for them to amalgamate or reform. Without pressure for reform, inefficient local governments will remain a headache for many local businesses.

2010-11 WA State Budget Overview

• surplus of $290 million for the current year, 2009-10
• projected surplus of $286 million for 2010-11
• maintenance of the State’s AAA credit rating
• increased charges for electricity and water to improve alignment with the cost of supply
• an asset investment program valued at $7.6 billion in 2010-11
• largest ever injection of additional funding for the State health system, for a total spend of $5.6 billion in 2010-11
• $19 million committed to create 7,600 additional training places and $3 million over two years to provide a cash bonus to employers that take on out-of-contract apprentices and trainees
• WA economy forecast to grow by 4.5% in 2010-11 and 4.75% in 2011-12
• business investment is expected to grow strongly by 11.5% in 2010-11 and 12.25% in 2011-12

The National Health and Hospitals Network is Stage 2 of the Rudd Government’s national health reform plan. The proposal is for a nationally funded, locally managed network and is claimed to be the biggest reform since Medicare.

Notwithstanding the politics around these proposed reforms to the health system, there are some important policies and principles that underpin health reform more generally. It can be argued that the content of reform can be less important in determining whether it receives public and legislative approval than the timing, the manner of presentation, the extent of consultation with stakeholders and the mood of the public. What are the factors, particularly those under total or partial control of governments, that can help or hinder reform of the health system?

Most, if not all, countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries are striving to raise standards of health in their communities and to improve standards of health care. These standards can be pitted against the escalating costs of health both in real terms and as a percentage of GDP. The performance of health systems and their reforms is generally measured against the objectives of health policy and include access, quality, responsiveness, sustainability, equity and efficiency. Efficiency is the key – maximising health outcomes, improvements and responsiveness for the amount spent.

This is a complex area and health reform can be viewed from a health, economic or political perspective. In many instances, it is not only the health sector that is central for reform and improvements in health outcomes but other areas of government may have important roles to play. As an example, the provision of clean drinking water or the maintenance of access routes such as roads and railways, both known contributors to better health, are managed outside the health sector. And, in Australia, we have multiple layers of government all contributing in various ways to improve the health of the population.

Four issues are relevant to the success of policy and structural reform (OECD Health Working Paper No 51, 2010). These are:

1. The existence of appropriate institutions to support reform, from design to decision to implementation.
2. The impact on and reactions of those affected by the reforms.
3. Reform agendas, timing and interactions across different policy areas.
4. The role of evidence and international organisations to sustain reforms.

Following on from these, further specific issues have been proposed that can lead to eventual success of health reform: failure in one generally leads to overall failure of the reform. In the health sector alone, these can include:

• the role of professionals who provide health services (including both public and private providers);
• the role of information and evidence (of successful reform);
• the role of international comparisons of health system performance;
• a clear need and compelling design for reform;
• taking advantage of a political ‘window of opportunity’;
• communication and engagement with proponents of reform and other stakeholders, especially those who may hold veto or opposition powers;
• use of incentives to align the interests of stakeholders with the intentions of the reform; and
• securing sufficient resources to pay for the reforms in their totality.

There can be trade-offs, for example, between maximising the success and sustainability of the reforms and minimising the resources available for investment. In any case, there needs to be careful consideration of what the determinants of successful health system reforms are and how effective reform can be achieved.

The Intergenerational Report 2010 released in early February by the Federal Government has a great deal to tell us about the economic and fiscal implications of an ageing and growing population. 

It is known that Australia’s population is ageing and this places pressure not only on the overall fiscal situation but on health and aged care services. Currently, state and territory revenues are growing at around 3-4% per annum compared to 11% growth in health spending. If current revenue and health spending trends continue, it is projected by Treasury that the total health spending of all states will exceed 100% of their tax revenues by 2045-46, or earlier.  This is why health reform must be tackled now. The major issue is the carve-up of Commonwealth and state responsibilities for the funding and running of state public hospitals. 

The Report contains more detail, much of it alarming, about the impact of the growing, ageing population. Currently, more than one quarter of government spending is directed to health, pensions and aged care. Four per cent of GDP in 2009-10 was directed to health and this is expected to rise to 7.1% by 2050. This increase is largely due to increasing demand for health services and the introduction of new technologies. There will also be fiscal pressure with increased demand for pensions and other forms of income support as the population ages.

Spending projections in the Report are in the private health insurance rebate (although there has been mention of capping this to deliver some savings), expenditure on hospitals and pharmaceutical spending. In light of these health pressures, the health system must continue to deliver value for money, demonstrate improvements in efficiency and quality, respond to innovation and be flexible.

Spending on aged care is projected to grow from 0.8% of GDP in 2009-10 to 1.8% in 2050. The main contributor to the increase is growth in residential care (including high care and low care) services, with spending on community care (including various programs and packages such as Home and Community Care) not far behind.  It is also proposed that government will fund people so they can choose the services they want from their preferred provider. It is also proposed to introduce bonds as payment for accommodation, encouraging choice and flexibility.

Population growth is the main driver of increases in aged care expenditure with the proportion of the population over 85 years expected to quadruple over the next 40 years, leading to increased demand for a range of residential options. Other factors that can impact on spending on aged care include changes in the cost of services, projected future increased levels of disability in the ageing population, the mix and availability of residential and community care services and changes in government policy regarding the funding and allocation of aged care places.

Spending projections on aged care also include pensions and income support payments which are expected to increase from 6.5% of GDP in 2015 to 6.9% in 2050. This increase is solely due to population growth and indexation; other income support payments are currently large scale and are not projected to alter much.

While the Report paints a realistic picture of the implications of a growing ageing population for health expenditure, it recommends a broad policy agenda to address the challenges and to ensure long-term sustainable economic growth.

By Alison Garton
CCI Chief Health Policy Adviser

Workers’ compensation and changes to annual leave

The Workers’ Compensation & Injury Management Act is silent as to the interaction between workers’ compensation and annual leave entitlements. This has resulted in workers being entitled to receive both annual leave payments (while they are holiday) and workers’ compensation (if they are not yet fully fit for work).

This nonsensical approach has now been addressed by the Fair Work Act 2009. Under the Act, an employee is not entitled to take or accrue leave during a compensation period when the employee is absent from work and receiving compensation.

This means that any period of time where an employee is in receipt of weekly compensation payments that they cannot accrue leave nor are they entitled to take annual leave.

For further clarification on this provision please contact the Employee Relations Advice Centre on (08) 9365 7660.

Workers’ compensation, return to work and termination

A decision has been handed down by Fair Work Australia that has implications for an employer’s ability to terminate the employment of someone who has been on modified duties.

In the case of Button v J Boag & Son Brewing Pty Ltd, an employer provided modified duties to an employee for a period of eight months. They subsequently decided that the employee should not be working in these modified duties and placed him on office duties.

Several months later the employer terminated the employment relationship citing that the employee was not able to perform the inherent requirements of his role.

Fair Work Australia confirmed that an employer has the right to terminate the employment relationship where the employee cannot perform the inherent requirements of the role. This instance was unusual in that the employee had been provided with a modified role and he was able to perform the inherent requirements of it. Therefore Fair Work Australia found that there was no valid reason to terminate the employment.

Based on this decision employers should consider the following when providing modified duties to an employee:

• create a return to work program;
• document the objective of the program (i.e. to assist the worker to return to normal duties);
• set a review point (usually based on medical advice) as to when the program will be reviewed; and
• clearly identify whether you require the employee to return to their normal duties or whether you can accommodate a permanently modified role.

If you have any questions on how to set up a return to work program call CCI’s workers’ compensation advisers on
(08) 9365 7676.

By Samantha Rudd
CCI Workers’ Compensation Adviser

In 2008 the Prime Minister pledged to ‘close the gap’ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health outcomes. What is this gap?

We know that Indigenous Australians have a life expectancy some 20 years less than non-Indigenous Australians. We also know that Indigenous babies die at a rate five times greater than other Australian babies and low incomes, poor housing and lack of access to appropriate health services continue to affect the health of Indigenous children and adults.

Two ambitious targets for improvement have been set by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), namely to close the gap in life expectancy within a generation and to halve the gap in mortality rates for Indigenous children under five years old within a decade.

Life expectancy is a broad indicator of long-term health and well-being. It is influenced by access to effective health care, levels of income, education and environmental factors such as sanitation. It can also be influenced by lifestyle factors such as smoking, use of drugs and alcohol, nutrition and exercise. Similarly, infant mortality is an indicator of health and well-being. Most infant deaths occur in the first year of life with fewer in the years up to age four.

Extensive funding has been directed towards Indigenous health and in 2008-09 the Federal Government spent 50% more on Indigenous health than in 2007-08. But has the increased funding helped? 

Seemingly not, as a report in 2009 indicated. Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage: Key Indicators 2009 showed the following in relation to health. The life expectancy indicator estimated the average number of years a person born between 2005 and 2007 could expect to live if there were no changes to population death rates throughout his or her lifetime. It is a complex calculation. Based on combined data for 2005-07:

• The estimated life expectancy at birth for Indigenous males was 67 years and for Indigenous females, 73 years.  The corresponding estimates for non-Indigenous males and females were 79 and 83 years.
• The gap for Indigenous and non-Indigenous life expectancy at birth was 12 years for males and 10 years for females. The trend was for the gap overall for males to widen and for females to narrow slightly. Note that this is better than the current gaps which are closer to 20 years.

In relation to infant mortality, the Report showed that it was improving but was still two to three times higher for Indigenous infants than for infants in the rest of the population. Infant mortality is influenced by the socioeconomic status, age and nutrition of the mother and the birthweight of the baby as well as substantiated child abuse, injury, preventable disease and access to clean water and sanitation.

CCI’s 2007 discussion paper Building Human Capital identified Indigenous people as an under-utilised group which can play an important role in filling the labour shortage. Effectively addressing Indigenous health will assist this, as well as helping to turn around demographic trends that place a significant strain on local service provision.

In certain regions, the Indigenous population is growing strongly while also experiencing a decline in average age. Considering these regions have difficulty in sourcing and retaining staff in remote locations, the Indigenous population offers an important source of labour.

Understandably, questions are now being asked about where the federal government money is being spent, on what it is being spent and what is the level of unmet need.  It has been argued that a lack of accountability has led to a proliferation of health services, often with no sure evidence-based policy and often with little demand. With the mixture of Commonwealth funding and involvement of various levels of government and public, private and Aboriginal medical services, there are no shortages of services (even if there are both gaps and duplications) but a lack of leadership, financial accountability and targeted funding. 

What could be done better?

• coordinated health care that is patient centred rather than an (amply funded) array of provider focused services;
• better data collection to underscore the delivery of targeted services; 
• better documentation of spending;
• greater accountability for service delivery; and
• evaluation of the effectiveness of Indigenous health funding.

By Alison Garton
CCI Chief Health Policy Adviser

The Intergenerational Report 2010 released in early February by the Federal Government has a great deal to tell us about the economic and fiscal implications of an ageing and growing population. 

It is known that Australia’s population is ageing and this places pressure not only on the overall fiscal situation but on health and aged care services. Currently, state and territory revenues are growing at around 3-4% per annum compared to 11% growth in health spending. If current revenue and health spending trends continue, it is projected by Treasury that the total health spending of all states will exceed 100% of their tax revenues by 2045-46, or earlier.  This is why health reform must be tackled now. The major issue is the carve-up of Commonwealth and state responsibilities for the funding and running of state public hospitals. 

The Report contains more detail, much of it alarming, about the impact of the growing, ageing population. Currently, more than one quarter of government spending is directed to health, pensions and aged care. Four per cent of GDP in 2009-10 was directed to health and this is expected to rise to 7.1% by 2050. This increase is largely due to increasing demand for health services and the introduction of new technologies. There will also be fiscal pressure with increased demand for pensions and other forms of income support as the population ages.

Spending projections in the Report are in the private health insurance rebate (although there has been mention of capping this to deliver some savings), expenditure on hospitals and pharmaceutical spending. In light of these health pressures, the health system must continue to deliver value for money, demonstrate improvements in efficiency and quality, respond to innovation and be flexible.

Spending on aged care is projected to grow from 0.8% of GDP in 2009-10 to 1.8% in 2050. The main contributor to the increase is growth in residential care (including high care and low care) services, with spending on community care (including various programs and packages such as Home and Community Care) not far behind.  It is also proposed that government will fund people so they can choose the services they want from their preferred provider. It is also proposed to introduce bonds as payment for accommodation, encouraging choice and flexibility.

Population growth is the main driver of increases in aged care expenditure with the proportion of the population over 85 years expected to quadruple over the next 40 years, leading to increased demand for a range of residential options. Other factors that can impact on spending on aged care include changes in the cost of services, projected future increased levels of disability in the ageing population, the mix and availability of residential and community care services and changes in government policy regarding the funding and allocation of aged care places.

Spending projections on aged care also include pensions and income support payments which are expected to increase from 6.5% of GDP in 2015 to 6.9% in 2050. This increase is solely due to population growth and indexation; other income support payments are currently large scale and are not projected to alter much.

While the Report paints a realistic picture of the implications of a growing ageing population for health expenditure, it recommends a broad policy agenda to address the challenges and to ensure long-term sustainable economic growth.

Australian employees are stockpiling annual leave at an alarming rate, potentially risking business’ bottom line.

Australian employees have over $33 billion or 123 million days of accrued annual leave. Putting aside the financial liability to a business, there can be a number of detrimental effects to employees when they do not take their annual leave. Occupational health and safety, staff retention and morale may all suffer significantly if employees do not (or can not) take leave.

The financial liability for employers results as the often unrealised cost of the leave increases from year to year and as employees seek other types of leave such as stress leave or sick leave. The leading reasons employees do not take annual leave include anxiety about job security, lack of resources to adequately replace staff who take leave and lack of support from management.

Tourism Australia began promoting their No Leave, No Life campaign early last year and this campaign specifically targets how to encourage the taking of leave. Working with this campaign,
CCI has developed strategies for employers to encourage employees to take annual leave.

Why employees
stockpile leave

Many employees think they are doing their employers a favour by not taking their annual leave and while some employees feel they cannot take annual leave there are those employees who simply choose to stockpile their annual leave for a longer, more ideal holiday.

Wide spread redundancies across the labour market have correlated with an increase in anxiety about job security among employees. During this period, employees were working harder to prove their value to the organisation and were more reluctant to take a period of leave. Annual leave for these employees was used as an emergency back up in case of job loss or illness and may have been cashed-out for extra money.  

Another barrier often reported by employees is lack of support from management to take leave. While not granting annual leave to an employee can help an organisation overcome workload in the short term, this can have serious long term implications.

Practical strategies to encourage leave

As we enter an unprecedented period of both industrial relations change and expected growth in the economy there is a positive opportunity for employers to adopt a strategy that encourages employees to take their annual leave.

In encouraging staff to take leave it is important that managers attempt to lead by example. While it is often hard for management to find the time to take leave it is important when implementing such a policy that senior staff members adhere to the policy and take their annual leave.

Moving into a period of economic recovery, the job market is improving substantially and as such employees are going to be looking at organisational culture in deciding where they want to work. An organisation that embraces a policy which encourages leave will not only retain skilled staff but also attract premium employees.

In 2008 the Prime Minister pledged to ‘close the gap’ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health outcomes. What is this gap?

We know that Indigenous Australians have a life expectancy some 20 years less than non-Indigenous Australians. We also know that Indigenous babies die at a rate five times greater than other Australian babies and low incomes, poor housing and lack of access to appropriate health services continue to affect the health of Indigenous children and adults.

Two ambitious targets for improvement have been set by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), namely to close the gap in life expectancy within a generation and to halve the gap in mortality rates for Indigenous children under five years old within a decade.

Life expectancy is a broad indicator of long-term health and well-being. It is influenced by access to effective health care, levels of income, education and environmental factors such as sanitation. It can also be influenced by lifestyle factors such as smoking, use of drugs and alcohol, nutrition and exercise. Similarly, infant mortality is an indicator of health and well-being. Most infant deaths occur in the first year of life with fewer in the years up to age four.

Extensive funding has been directed towards Indigenous health and in 2008-09 the Federal Government spent 50% more on Indigenous health than in 2007-08. But has the increased funding helped? 

Seemingly not, as a report in 2009 indicated. Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage: Key Indicators 2009 showed the following in relation to health. The life expectancy indicator estimated the average number of years a person born between 2005 and 2007 could expect to live if there were no changes to population death rates throughout his or her lifetime. It is a complex calculation. Based on combined data for 2005-07:

•  The estimated life expectancy at birth for Indigenous males was 67 years and for Indigenous females, 73 years.  The corresponding estimates for non-Indigenous males and females were 79 and 83 years.

•  The gap for Indigenous and non-Indigenous life expectancy at birth was 12 years for males and 10 years for females. The trend was for the gap overall for males to widen and for females to narrow slightly. Note that this is better than the current gaps which are closer to 20 years.

In relation to infant mortality, the Report showed that it was improving but was still two to three times higher for Indigenous infants than for infants in the rest of the population. Infant mortality is influenced by the socioeconomic status, age and nutrition of the mother and the birthweight of the baby as well as substantiated child abuse, injury, preventable disease and access to clean water and sanitation.

CCI’s 2007 discussion paper Building Human Capital identified Indigenous people as an under-utilised group which can play an important role in filling the labour shortage. Effectively addressing Indigenous health will assist this, as well as helping to turn around demographic trends that place a significant strain on local service provision.

In certain regions, the Indigenous population is growing strongly while also experiencing a decline in average age. Considering these regions have difficulty in sourcing and retaining staff in remote locations, the Indigenous population offers an important source of labour.

Understandably, questions are now being asked about where the federal government money is being spent, on what it is being spent and what is the level of unmet need.  It has been argued that a lack of accountability has led to a proliferation of health services, often with no sure evidence-based policy and often with little demand. With the mixture of Commonwealth funding and involvement of various levels of government and public, private and Aboriginal medical services, there are no shortages of services (even if there are both gaps and duplications) but a lack of leadership, financial accountability and targeted funding. 

What could be done better?

•  coordinated health care that is patient centred rather than an (amply funded) array of provider focused services;

•  better data collection to underscore the delivery of targeted services;

•  better documentation of spending;

•  greater accountability for service delivery; and

•  evaluation of the effectiveness of Indigenous health funding.

With the start of another new year, typically we make resolutions to be healthier, lose weight, drink less alcohol, or quit smoking. 

But making such changes is not as easy as simply resolving to act; many of these take time or can take effect at any time of the year.

Here are some tips for individuals and workplaces to make positive lifestyle changes during 2010 that can lead to improved physical and mental health.  Reduced weight, increased physical activity and better eating habits can prevent other, more serious, diseases such as cancer and stroke from occurring later in life.

Individuals

So what should you do? These tips will lead to improved health, but results take some time to be achieved. They do not happen overnight!

•  Try to undertake at least 30 minutes exercise a day. The exercise must be reasonably vigorous and could be walking, jogging, swimming or bicycle riding. Find activities (more than one, for some variety) that you enjoy and try to fit at least one in per day.

•  Watch what you eat – if you are hungry, stick to nutritious options such as fruit and drink plenty of water. Not only does water hydrate you, it can stave off hunger pangs. At meal time, reduce your portion size and remember to eat your five serves of vegetables daily.

•  Reduce your alcohol consumption. National Health and Medical Council recommended levels are no more than two standard drinks on any day to reduce the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury. In Australia, a standard drink contains 10g of alcohol, for example, one can of mid-strength beer or one 100ml glass of wine.

•  Quit smoking. If you cannot do this on your own, there are well-established programs such as Quit that have proven successful. Remember it often takes more than one attempt to give up smoking. 

Workplaces

Workplaces have an important role to play. Not only do health and wellbeing programs at work support employees in their individual attempts to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle, they also lead to improved productivity and profitability. It has been shown that workplace health and wellness programs can reduce sick leave.

All workplace environments, small and large, can play a role in deciding which activities will be chosen for a suitable program. There are also different physical environments to consider, such as proximity to parks for outdoor activities or safe cycle tracks. 

Ideas for workplace programs that
your business could introduce during 2010 include:

•  Providing educational material and other information on health and wellness issues. Resource kits, supported by CCI, and developed by the Department of Sport and Recreation are available at
http://www.dsr.wa.gov.au/265. 

•  Providing fresh fruit for employees.

•  Encouraging the use of stairs instead of lifts with clear signage and lighting.

•  Providing showers and changing rooms for employees who wish to walk, jog or cycle to work.

•  Encouraging the development of walking groups at lunchtime or before/after work.

•  Supporting team sporting activities or yoga groups for employees. These both assist with physical or mental health and build relationships amongst employees.

In all initiatives, the aim is to improve mental and physical health, improve work-life balance, raise awareness about the risks of unhealthy diets and physical inactivity and educate employees about health options.

Initiate a health and well being program this year and watch better employee health become better business.

Concerns remain in council

Members may remember that CCI previously provided an updated on the status of the Safe Work Australia Council as a body created administratively. The status of the council was such that the body would have had little accountability to Parliament for its actions.

Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard had resubmitted the legislation to Parliament for consideration. In order to avoid a double dissolution of Parliament, the Senate has now passed the bill, even though the underlying concerns with the body remain.

CCI’s concern with the structure of Safe Work Australia has related to the reduced representation of employers and workers on the council. The reduced number of representatives will mean that the concerns of employers will need to be expressed at the State level.

Western Australian employers should not feel overly concerned with this development because WorkSafe WA is truly a tripartite consultative body, which hears and attempts to genuinely address the concerns raised by employers and employees.

CCI's Anne Bellamy is a member of this committee and remains a strong voice for employers in the State.

The Safe Work Australia Council, which is responsible for developing the model occupational safety and health legislation, met on 11 September 2009. Presented at this meeting was the draft occupational health and safety legislation for further review by members.

This legislation will soon be available for a six week public comment period. CCI urges members to make contact and discuss what impacts the draft legislation may have upon their business. Your feedback is vital so CCI can continue to be a strong voice for WA business.

If you have concerns about occupational safety and health or would like to provide feedback please contact CCI on (08) 9365 7415.

Know your obligations

As an employer are you aware of your obligations regarding superannuation and workers compensation? Did you know that employees are entitled to superannuation contributions when they are medically certified to participate in a return to work program?

For further advice about the effect of workers' compensation and employee relations law, please contact CCI’s Employee Relations Advice Centre on (08) 9365 7660.

By Samantha Rudd

CCI Workers' Compensation Adviser

The National Preventative Health Strategy final report was released on 1 September 2009. Based on seven strategic directions, setting ambitious health targets around obesity, tobacco and the harmful use of alcohol. 

These three were among the top seven preventable risk factors that influenced the burden of disease in Australia, with 7% of the overall burden attributable to each of obesity and smoking and 3% to the harmful effects of alcohol. Preventable risk factors accounted for 32% of Australia’s burden of disease. 

The four targets adopted in the strategy were to:

• halt and reverse the rise of overweight and obesity;
• reduce the prevalence of daily smoking to 10% or less;
• reduce the proportion of Australians who drink at short-term risky/high-risk levels to 14% and those who drink at long-term risky/high-risk levels to 7%, and;
• reduce the life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

The effects of these risk factors are clear.

The prevalence of obesity and overweight individuals has been increasing steadily over the past 30 years across all ages, most notably in children.

Projections of the growth in prevalence of obesity mean that type two diabetes will become the major burden of disease for males by 2023. 

Smoking leads to premature death and smoking-related illness costs up to $5.7 billion per year in lost productivity. 

Harmful use of alcohol leads to a number of costs including crime, health effects, lost productivity and road trauma. 

The focus on obesity, tobacco and alcohol is important when we consider that much of the gap in health and life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is attributable to these risk factors.

Recent research evidence is presented in the strategy to highlight the impact these risk factors have on health and the importance of early intervention and prevention.

Capacity for the implementation of the strategy will be through a National Prevention Agency which will facilitate a national research infrastructure, provide resources and advice for policy development, generate partnerships for workplace, school and community interventions, assist in the development of a prevention workforce and coordinate and implement a national approach to social marketing.

In each of the three target areas there is a series of recommendations, based around a first phase (2010-2013), a second phase (2014-2017) and a third phase (2018-2020).  Examples of recommendations include:

Obesity

• Increase levels of physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour at all levels of government, business and the community.
• Introduce comprehensive food labelling detailing salt, sugar and fat content to support healthier food choices.
• Phase out junk food advertising before 9 pm.

Tobacco

• Increase the average price of a packet of 30 cigarettes to at least $20.
• End all forms of tobacco advertising.
• Eliminate exposure to second-hand smoke in public places.

Alcohol

• Phase out alcohol advertising and sponsorship in sport.
• Reform alcohol taxation and pricing (through minimum [floor] price of alcohol) to discourage harmful drinking.
• Develop nationally consistent alcohol policies on, for example, the number of bars, pubs and bottle shops and their opening hours and on sporting codes of conduct for players' alcohol-related behaviours.

The strategy presents a number of specific actions in each of the phases and across different settings including schools, government, workplaces, indigenous communities, primary health care and individuals and families, affirming the need for everyone having a role in prevention and taking responsibility for health.

By Alison Garton

CCI Chief Health Policy Adviser

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that the world is moving closer to an avian influenza (bird flu) pandemic that covers a wide geographic area and affects a large proportion of the population.

After consultation with the private and public sectors, DOCEP has developed a discussion paper that outlines the labour relations implications of an influenza pandemic for employees and employers.

The discussion paper outlines recommended principles in preparing for and responding to an influenza pandemic. In addition the paper provides answers to key questions about the impact of a pandemic on employment arrangements.

The discussion paper has been released for a two-month consultation period, to allow feedback from individuals and organisations in the community, across the public and private sectors.

For further information or to discuss the document or emergency planning generally, contact Anne Bellamy at CCI on 9365 7591. Please provide responses should to anne.bellamy@cciwa.com or directly to DOCEP atlrsurvey@docep.wa.gov.au by 30 April 2007.