Some employers still appear reluctant to adopt flexible hiring strategies to attract new mothers back to the workforce, despite the state’s evershrinking and increasingly competitive talent pool.
Some employers still appear reluctant to adopt flexible hiring strategies to attract new mothers back to the workforce, despite the state’s evershrinking and increasingly competitive talent pool.
While organisations insist they are adopting new and innovative ways of attracting and retaining staff, many employers are shying away from offering new employees flexible working hours and other options, such as job share packages, to attract potential candidates.
Drake Australia WA state manager Kate Duncan said while organisations were constantly looking at how to address staff shortages, they were more likely to be flexible with candidates’ skill levels rather than their work hours.
“There is some flexibility but not as much as you would think, with all the talk of work-life balance and bringing mothers back into the workforce,” she said.
“[Employers] are saying that if a person’s got the right attitude and they haven’t got the skills, they’re prepared to train them.” Ms Duncan said some employers were concerned that adopting flexible conditions for individual employees may set a precedent for other employees to follow suit.
“They’re saying, if we offer school hours to one employee, how many others will then want it,” she said.
Ambrosini Professional Placements managing director Caroline Ambrosini said that, in her experience, flexible recruiting was not a common practice among her clients.
She said offers of flexible working hours were more likely to be offered to current employees as part of a retention strategy, not as an up-front guarantee to new staff members.
Porter Consulting Group managing director Kristy Porter said there has been a gradual shift by employers towards a more flexible approach to recruiting in order to attract suitably qualified and experienced staff.
“It’s more on the table than it was five years ago,” she said.
But Sarah Wilkins, co-founder and director of Next Phase Recruitment, believes there are a lot of misconceptions about taking on flexible staff.
The former in-house lawyer started Next Phase Recruitment with her business partner, Emma Wright, last November, and specialises in placing new mothers and retirees returning to the workforce.
“Some people think it will be harder than it actually is,” she said.
“There’s also the perception that workers are not flexible or not keen to go the extra mile, and we’ve found that that’s not true.
They’re generally grateful to be given the chance, and can make themselves available over the phone or can take work home.” City of Bayswater human resources manager Ann Blakeney-Britter said the council had successfully adopted flexible working conditions for new mothers looking to return to work, allowing one of its projects managers to work from home and come into the office two days a week.
The council also offers generous personal leave conditions, and the opportunity to job share.
“When someone goes on maternity leave, the sudden loss of skills leaves a huge hole,” Ms Blakeney-Britter said.
“We want to retain these people.” The flexible conditions also extend to university students as a way of attracting graduates, by offering parttime flexible employment contracts and incentives for completing study.
Ms Blakeney-Britter said a level of assessment was required before committing to flexible practices to judge the suitability of both the candidate and the position.
