Survey overview

As part of our commitment to the ongoing safety and welfare of our workforce, Federation University launched the COVID-19 staff check-in survey on Thursday, 30 April 2020 through our independent third party provider, the VOICE project.

This was an opportunity to understand how staff are coping and adjusting to new ways of working and connecting, as well as the cumulative impact on their health and wellbeing, as we continue to adapt to changes necessitated by COVID-19.

Thank you to everyone who participated.  The response was extremely pleasing, with a total of 1,033 staff (53%) completing the questionnaire, and 681 staff (35%) answering the qualitative questions on how to continue supporting staff moving forward.

Key findings: Wellbeing and organisational performance results

The following is an overview of the high-level findings:

Wellbeing

Overall, the survey results indicate that 78% of respondents are feeling good and have a moderate to a high sense of safety at this time.  93% of respondents indicated they feel safe carrying out their roles and 74% felt they were coping well with the disruption due to COVID-19.

Organisational performance (progress)

Staff perceptions of the university’s performance were also moderate to highly favourable (79%).  80% of respondents believe workplace changes associated with COVID-19 have been managed well and 85% are confident that the university will be able to continue supporting students. 70% of respondents perceive the future of the university as positive.

Respondents also rated the following COVID-19 adaptive practices as moderately to highly favourable:

• Staff communication (81%) in particular communication regarding changes in how staff are to work and operate during COVID-19 (90%)
• Access to resources (83%) ranging from job information (87%), equipment (83%) and technology to work from home (87%)
• Health and safety (85%) with 88% of respondents indicating they know where to get help if feeling emotionally unwell or unsafe and 87% being aware of the processes to follow should they become unwell
• Supervision (85%) specifically related to communication and support received from line managers/supervisors during this period
• Co-worker collaboration (84%) related to communication (90%) and working together effectively (88%) during the disruption caused by COVID-19
• Involvement (79%) overall respondents felt encouraged to give feedback about things that concern them (80%) and empowered to make decisions needed to do their jobs well (79%)
• Work/life balance (75%) while the university has flexible work arrangements to meet staff needs (82%), balancing family responsibilities with work expectations (75%) and having manageable workloads (69%) were seen as more of a challenge.

Conclusion

In summary, Federation University has successfully responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by proactively supporting the health and safety of staff, while managing university operations through adaptive and innovative initiatives and processes.  Staff have clearly indicated that they recognise and acknowledge what has been put in place to support their productivity and wellbeing.

Emerging is an ongoing need to remain attentive and continue with current communication, resourcing and management practices to maintain staff wellbeing.  This is especially important as concerns around return to campus, job security and changing workloads are likely to increase stress levels.

Priority areas for ongoing focus and/or improvement include:

• Work/life balance – continue to look for ways to support staff to manage their mental health, workloads and balance their family and carer responsibilities with work expectations
• Work processes – greater clarity around health and safety guidelines and processes for how staff and students will transition back to campus including the way work will be delivered from an IT systems and workload management perspective
• Involvement – continue to look for ways to include and empower managers and staff to make decisions needed to effectively manage their work areas and perform their jobs well.

Survey draw

For those staff who also entered the draw for the chance to win a $50.00 gift voucher, I am pleased to announce the following winners.

Congratulations to:

• Robyn Lampard, Academic Services and Support, Berwick Campus;
• Naomi Cunningham, Teaching Quality, Brisbane Campus;
• Liana Brennan, Student Experience, Gippsland Campus;
• Steve Burgiel, Information Technology Services, Gippsland Campus;
• Alexandra Price, Marketing, Mt Helen Campus;
• Ean Ooi, School of Engineering, Information Technology and Physical Sciences, Mt Helen Campus;
• Stephen Clarke, Federation TAFE, SMB Campus; and
• Emily Innes, Federation TAFE, Corrections, Wimmera Campus.

We hope you will use your voucher to support a local business, with something that enhances your health and wellbeing.  Enjoy!