A common misunderstanding is the idea that an employee can be dismissed during their probation period without the need for the employer to give a substantive reason or follow a procedurally fair process.

What is a probation period?

Increasing numbers of new graduates are being employed in private practice, the largest employer of Australian physiotherapists (HWA 2019).

The issue of employing long-term casuals has become increasingly prominent in Australian workplaces in recent years, with award-specific obligations introduced for employers and employees in 2018 to address the associated complexities.

Despite this, ongoing difficulties are being felt in the Australian industrial relations landscape.

Running a business isn’t easy. Each day there is no guarantee how much revenue is going to come through the door, nor how much your expenses will be for that day or how to grow and maintain your client base.

University and further study are geared towards how to be a great physiotherapist and furthering technical skills, but this does not guarantee commercial success, or that of a successful business.

The importance of workplace policies and procedures in managing the new COVID-19 normal

As Australia attempts to live with COVID-19 rather than eradicate it, workplaces across the country are facing challenges unlike any they have faced before.

As many physiotherapists in private practice in rural and remote settings are sole operators, the need for mentoring and making professional connections is great.

The team at the HR in Practice service has recently received a number of enquiries from members regarding the ‘cashing out’ of long service leave (LSL).

Specifically, this involves being paid out LSL as a financial sum in place of taking time off. This is not the same as being paid out leave when leaving a job.

You have probably seen a lot of changes in our industry in the last 25 years but, more recently, the times are a changing and, thankfully, the corporates are coming.

To give you some context, in 2018 after 20-plus years of growing a large group of physiotherapy clinics, my business partner and I decided it was time to leave the party.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the employment landscape was evolving.

Many workers now value non-monetary benefits such as flexibility and a healthy workplace over the traditional monetary-based incentives that previously reigned supreme.

Burnout is the term used for a state of mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion driven by chronic workplace stress.

Burnout can also have a major effect on the way we work. It can impact on our sense of job satisfaction, ability to concentrate, and how effective we are.

Those who experience burnout often report depleted energy levels, changes in mood, and increased negativity or cynicism.