Mercy Community’s 700 staff support more than 4,000 people in Queensland, providing innovative and responsive services in the areas of child protection, multicultural community support, family mental health, disability support, as well as community and residential-based aged care. Faced with high costs, an inability to be competitive and an upcoming Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Award pay increase, the organisation decided to embark on a reclassification of roles for approximately 500 employees in order to become viable.
Mercy Community Services
Mercy Community Services
700 employees
Nudgee, QLD
Solution
Mercy Community identified the need for additional HR capacity and expertise, and enlisted Harrison Human Resources to project manage and implement the position reclassifications confirmed by their lawyers, including:
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- Project scoping and project plan, including a communications plan
- Providing independent advice on process, change and project management
- Assessment of the impact of the change to individual employees
- Managing all required documentation
- Involvement in union consultation
- Planning and conducting both group and one-on-one meetings with impacted employees and their line manager (as requested by employee)
- Providing change letters/contracts to all employees
- Updating position descriptions for employees as required
Testimonial
“Harrison Human Resources is responsive and very professional. Claire led a project with us to restructure and reclassify over 400 positions at our organisation. This project was a massive change for us with risk all over it. Claire worked with us to find consultants who fitted the way we worked and had the capabilities we needed. Claire and the team were able to successfully move us through the process with expert advice as well as brute woman power when required. We successfully implemented this significant change with full delivery of financial benefits and an increase in employee engagement. So a raging success. It was a great experience and one we will use again for future projects. Happy to recommend Claire and her team to anyone who asks.”
Fritha Radyk
CEO
Outcome
The project resulted in a number of successful outcomes:
- Allowed the organisation to provide continuity of care for customers across the State
- The project allowed the new CEO to improve the financial performance of the organisation and retain government contracts of service for funding and therefore become more viable and competitive in the industry
- The position reclassifications were crucially delivered on time. Due to the next Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Award pay increase, the project had to be completed by a specific deadline
- Successfully conducted union consultation and there was no industrial action
- There were no Fair Work Ombudsman or Commission claims
- 500 employees were issued a new job description and a new position classification
- Successfully navigated complex industrial relations, award issues and union negotiations
- Saved time for internal HR staff, and supplemented their capacity and capability due to internal organisation restructure to lead this considerable project
- All employees were provided with support through consultations and meetings
- All communications, including FAQs, were drafted for employees and unions in addition to scripts for managers – to ensure message consistency and avoid confusion
