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05/12/2008 03:00 PM
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Group certificates and tax
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Interesting question this week from Brett: "Last year my employer took forever to give us our group certificates and I am worried the same thing might happen this year."
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04/18/2008 03:00 PM
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Tired and emotional on the job hunt
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As anyone who reads this column knows, job hunting is an emotional business and candidates take it to heart when they get treated shabbily on the job hunt.
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03/06/2008 04:00 PM
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So long, farewell and moving on
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As promised, here are some tips on writing a resignation letter. It seems many people rate writing their resignation letter high on their list of things they hate doing. However, by keeping the letter simple you can stop worrying and just get on with it.
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02/18/2008 04:00 PM
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Pay excuses and current salary trends
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There is a lot of talk about salaries right now. The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, is leading the charge with a pay freeze for MPs and a call for Australia's top executives to sacrifice their hefty pay rises this year in the name of fighting inflation.
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02/15/2008 04:00 PM
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Help for people with a disability
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I've received several questions about finding employment services
catering to those with a disability and or those wanting to return to
work after an injury.
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02/05/2008 04:00 PM
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Resignation Letter
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As promised, here are some tips on writing a resignation letter. It seems many people rate writing their resignation letter high on their list of things they hate doing. However, by keeping the letter simple you can stop worrying and just get on with it.
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01/23/2008 04:00 PM
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Using a career coach
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A lot of people email me questions about finding a career coach. The use of career experts is definitely on the rise but there are some dos and don'ts.
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01/23/2008 04:00 PM
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Reminder - Prime your referees
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I was contacted by email recently to provide a reference for a graduate who had done some work for me. The candidate is an intelligent and diligent young woman and I was happy to say so but I was not at all happy with the email.
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12/18/2007 04:00 PM
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Pay rise by email
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VM asks: "Could you please advise if I can ask my boss for a promotion and a pay rise using email?" The answer is no and yes.
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11/21/2007 04:00 PM
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Annual leave
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Robyn's employer is closing the office over Christmas and has directed employees to take holiday leave. Warren's manager says he has way too much accumulated leave (7.5 weeks) and "must" take three weeks off over the "quiet holiday period".
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11/21/2007 04:00 PM
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Help for the bullied
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After making an appeal a few weeks back for information on support groups for those who have experienced workplace bullying, I'm sad to report that there is very little out there.
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11/02/2007 04:00 PM
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Bully update
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BB writes: "I'm attending an interview with a potential employer and found out that one of the interviewers is an ex-colleague, who I didn't get along with. Should I pull out or try to talk to her beforehand?"
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Three questions
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A few topics this week, namely photos with resumes; working from home; and researching careers in government. First, to Jayde and Emma, my answer is "no", it's not the norm to include a photo with your resume.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Mature hopefuls
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I recently profiled an amazing guy, Ian Blair. Ian landed a really cool job as a senior consultant with software specialist Prima Consulting. He has also become the office "sustainability guru" - a cutting edge role made possible via a career spanning 40 plus years.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Bully hot button
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I've done a fair bit of media work on office bullies recently. This includes commenting on a recent survey CareerOne.com.au compiled with researchers Core Data that found 74 per cent of respondents had been bullied at work and 77 per cent thought bullies got ahead at work.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Office farewells
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Something a little lighter this week - office gift giving. DT writes: "This issue has caused me distress in the past and continues to surface regularly. How much money should I give to a temp's farewell collection?
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08/22/2007 03:00 PM
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Help
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Australia's first Workplace Ombudsmen recently started work so here is a column to clip in case you ever need the details.
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08/07/2007 03:00 PM
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Mining mystery
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I get hit with a wave of emails every time a new "mining boom" story makes the newspapers. While the boom is fact not fiction, I have to wonder about this notion that people without experience can up sticks and walk into lucrative mining jobs.
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07/03/2007 03:00 PM
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Pay rise update
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It's the time of year when our thoughts turn to pay rises in readiness for the new financial year on July 1. So what should you do? Hope for the best?
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06/26/2007 03:00 PM
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Friendly mature-age employers
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I recently reported the first mature-age friendly employer awards. Organised by Adage, the awards attracted many big name employers. (You'll find the winner and 20 short listed companies in the Ask Kate section on careerone.com.au.)
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05/25/2007 03:00 PM
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Tide turns slowly on age prejudice
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Grace du Prie writes: "Is it really true that employers are starting to value experience again and that mature-aged workers have better chances now to find employment?" Grace, the tide is definitely turning.
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05/01/2007 03:00 PM
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Expression of Interest
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Lydia is applying for a job that requires an "Expression of Interest". What is it? According to my research, an "Expression of Interest" is a term used when an employer is casting a wide net to find a certain type of candidate.
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03/14/2006 04:00 PM
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About Kate
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Kate Southam is the founding editor of careerone.com.au, and has specialised in employment reporting since October 1999.
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05/02/2008 03:00 PM
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Mobile phones
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I've had two emails from people who say that in exchange for having a work-issued mobile phone their respective bosses want 24/7 access to them...
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04/01/2008 03:00 PM
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Job ad puzzles
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This week, Anushka wants to know what "ability to work autonomously" means, while Pete wants to know what employers mean by "process driven".
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03/20/2008 04:00 PM
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Office baby showers
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Jayne writes: "The number of baby showers held at work is burning a hole in my pocket. Can I just go to the showers for people I know or is it better to go to none?"
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03/14/2008 04:00 PM
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A matter of timing
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Interesting question this week from JF about start times. He writes: "I arrive at work at 9 am sharp, occasionally a couple of minutes late. My boss says I should be ready to start work at 9 am not just arriving at work.
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02/22/2008 04:00 PM
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Crystal Ball
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Jodie writes: "I have been totally out of the workforce for a few years and I also have limited skills. All I know is bar work but I am confident that I could work in an office. How likely am I to get a job in admin?"
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02/11/2008 04:00 PM
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Emailed farewells
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Two questions this week and an appeal from me to you for information. First up, Phil wants to know what the "k"stands for in job ads, for example "package $70k pa". The "k" stands for thousand, in this case, a package of $70,000 pa.
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01/23/2008 04:00 PM
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Low down on cover letters
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I've met managers who throw resumes in the bin if they don't come with a cover letter. I've also met one recruiter who doesn't like cover letters but he certainly wouldn't dismiss a candidate for writing one.
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01/23/2008 04:00 PM
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Using a career coach
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The New Year is a hot time for job change so I've devoting the first few columns of 2008 to revisiting popular topics such as resume and cover letter writing, referees, interview tips and resignation letters.
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11/21/2007 04:00 PM
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WIP that employee into shape
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KB has a team of three. "One team member appears to listen to instructions but never seems to finish anything. I have to chase him to find out what he's up to. I hate nagging and quite
frankly, resent it.
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11/21/2007 04:00 PM
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Christmas party blues - CareerOne
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Annie thinks it's strange how many Christmas work parties are
now organised on a week night instead of a Friday night.
"My work party, my son's, my husband's - it seems the office Christmas bash.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Mixed messages
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"AS" interviewed for a job and was later told she was not successful by letter. "I rang and asked for feed back and was told the job went to someone more qualified.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Mining follow up
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I've received some fantastic emails after writing about the mining sector. People have shared their real life experiences - some successful, some not - about working in mining. Craig told me about driving across the country with a mate.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Salary frustration 1
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Yvonne wants to see salaries on job ads, which echoes what I've heard from many other Ask Kate readers. She writes: "It should be mandatory for a company to publicise the approximate salary for any given job.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Salary frustration 2
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Last week "Yvonne" related her daughter's experience of going through two rounds of interviews without being told the salary for the role she was interviewed for.
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11/05/2007 04:00 PM
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Bullies bite back
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I've had lots of emails about workplace bullies after my recent articles and you can read these comments on Kate's Blog on www.careerone.com.au. In two cases, I heard from entire teams who had been bullied by a manager.
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08/30/2007 03:00 PM
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Rude
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Has anyone else noticed that people are getting ruder? It appears to me that courtesy has somehow become 'uncool' and that rudeness has become associated with power..
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08/15/2007 03:00 PM
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Pay disappointment
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It appears the new financial year has brought mixed fortunes. A few of you missed out, a couple have questioned their pay rise of 3 per cent and one person was crushed with a pay rise of 6 per cent.
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07/30/2007 03:00 PM
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Micro manager - CareerOne
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"Daf" writes: "What is your recommendation if you feel your employer micro-manages you and that after x years you feel you've lost skills rather than gained skills?"
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06/20/2007 03:00 PM
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More on referees
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I recently wrote about your right to see notes made by someone reference checking you. The CEO of the Recruitment & Consulting Services Association, Julie Mills, has followed up with some interesting info about accessing those notes.
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06/07/2007 03:00 PM
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Fashion wannabes
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I get quite a few emails about breaking into the fashion industry. People wonder if work experience leads to permanent work
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05/11/2007 03:00 PM
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After school teen care idea
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I wrote a column recently about the lack of after school and holiday care for teenagers. The column was prompted by an email from one single mum who had good arrangements for her eight-year-old son but nothing for her daughter, 13.
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02/06/2008 04:00 PM
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Legal and Industrial
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Click on Legal and Industrial for the links which represent the different stories we have available on employment law and industrial relations topics.
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03/14/2006 04:00 PM
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Ask Kate archive
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Read previous articles published by Kate on careers and job seeking.
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