HSEC a Profession in demand

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HSEC - a Profession in demand

• Ben Wilson BMgmt (Emp Rel), Dip. FM
• Chris Ginever Grad. Dip. OHSM
• Wilson People Management

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The hazards of being a safety officer...A big
mining company recently hired several cannibals.
"You are all part of our team now", said the HR
rep during the welcoming briefing. "You get all
the usual benefits and you can go to the
cafeteria for something to eat, but please don't
eat any of the other employees". The cannibals
promised they would not. Four weeks later their
boss remarked, "You're all working very hard, and
I'm satisfied with you. However, one of our
Safety Officers has disappeared. Do any of you
know what happened to him?" The cannibals all
shook their heads.After the boss had left, the
leader of the cannibals said to the others,
"Which one of you idiots ate the Safety Officer?
A hand rose hesitantly, to which the leader of
the cannibals continued, "You fool!!! For four
weeks we've been eating Engineers and no one
noticed anything, but noooooo, you had to go and
eat someone important!
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Demand outstripping Supply!

• Just not enough HSEC/Risk professionals to meet
  demand
• This positive trend started in 2000
• It is expected to peak and continue with the
  super cycle for a minimum of 5yrs
• Biggest issue is dilution of numbers, quality,
  high salaries and wages, little mentoring and
  limited career succession programs.

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At a glance

• Labour market and industry skills needs have
  undergone unprecedented change
• OHSW Legislation has been ramped up and
  prosecution targets have been set by some state
  inspectorates. Some jurisdictions now have
  Industrial Manslaughter
• Strong economic growth coupled with low rates of
  unemployment
• Growth of new industries with few ready-skilled
  HSEC professionals
• Relocation of new industries into different
  regions with a different skills base
• Location of industry or project-based work in
  remote regional areas across Aust
• Technological changes within industry, especially
  production resulting in new innovative methods
  that outstrip legislation and therefore increases
  need for HSE assessment by up to date OHS
  personnel.

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Industries most effected by OHS skills shortage

• Australia is experiencing a boom in demand which
  is placing pressure
• on industries and their HSEC systems and
  processes
• Resources (Mining, Oil Gas) - Digging as fast
  as they can
• Construction Engineering - Building as fast as
  they can
• Government Managing the private sector demands
  and dealing with compliance issues competing
  with big .

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Salary Survey Results

• For a career path thats often portrayed as the
  poor relative of Human Resources, the results of
  a salary survey of safety and risk professionals
  comes as a shock.
• OHS graduates coming into the workforce are
  attracting a minimum of 60k
• At the top end of town, Australian HSEC
  professionals are demanding and getting
  packages
• approaching 350k. Internationally this figure
  increases.
• Director HSEC or VP Global Safety attracting
  450k

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WPM survey results

• The demand for Australian safety professions over
  the next 5 yrs will increase and the approximate
  levels are
• Position Salary Number
• HSE Graduate 60k 150
• HSE Officer 70k 50 100
• HSE Supervisor 70 100k 70 100
• HSE Manager 100 150k 50 75
• HSEC Executive 180k 30 50
• HSEC President 250k 15 25
• VP or Director 300k 20
• Duties
• Corporate HSEC culture, OHS Systems Audit, Risk
  Management, OHS Policies and Procedures,
• OHS Training, OHS due diligence, OHS
  Rehabilitation, OHS Claims Management, OHS Nurse/
• Emergency response.

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Australian Salary Survey Results

• Permanent Safety Appointments
• Organisations that have 200 staff are employing
  OHS graduates from 50 - 70k
• OHS Generalists in the medium to large
  Resources/Construction organisations are paying
  80 120k
• Safety Superintendents in Resources/Construction
  120 170k
• Safety Managers 150k
• Group Safety Executives and Major Project HSEC
  Leaders 200 300k
• Global VP Safety role 400k
• Contract Safety Appointments
• The minimum hourly rate for a OHS preventions
  contractor is 45 - 50/hr and this is for a
  relatively inexperienced but qualified OHS
  professional
• The maximum hourly pay rates are between 100
  250/hr for highly experienced candidates on
  major projects.

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Profession in Demand

• Just not enough HSEC/Risk professionals to meet
  demand
• This positive trend started in 2000
• It is expected to peak and continue with the
  super cycle for a minimum of 5yrs
• Biggest issue is dilution of numbers, quality,
  high salaries and wages, little mentoring and
  limited career succession programs.

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Safety, a lever for cultural change

• Safety is seen as a key lever for cultural change
• HSEC is seen as part of the risk management
  strategy
• Organisations switched- on understand that if
  they can bring all employees together on safety,
  they use this as a lever for larger cultural
  change and better business outcomes across the
  entire organisation
• HSEC is recognised as part of the organisations
  risk management strategy
• WPM see a clear link between organisations with
  solid safety programs and profitability
• These changing corporate attitudes to HSEC
  clearly mean the labour market is that much
  tighter for qualified professionals in this
  field, nowhere is this more apparent than the
  resources and construction industries in the boom
  states of WA, SA QLD.

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Industry effects

• Higher salaries, wages organisational costs
• A recent survey, titled the Heath Safety and
  Environment Remuneration Survey 2006-07, states
  
• In three of the five survey positions
  remuneration packages in the resources sector
  were the highest, some corroborating evidence
  supports our findings that the resource-dominant
  regions of WA, SA and QLD had the highest
  salaries overall when compared with others states
  and territories. (Source Drawn from Australian
  Job Search - an initiative of the Commonwealth
  Government of Australia - based on the ABS Labour
  Force Survey to February 2006.) Safe seek
• Quality of OHS output is at risk
• OHS retention issues can effect performance and
  overall culture
• More pressure on existing OHS systems and
  processes
• Projects not completed on time or on budget
• OHS candidates have unrealistic salary
  expectations
• Some OHS candidates are running before they can
  walk
• Making organisations focused on OHS skills
  development.

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Industry Effects continued

• Organisations are putting safety down as a real
  value and part of the overall risk management
  strategy and not just paying it lip service
• Some organisations are still attempting to take
  short cuts
• Some safety practitioners are not operational
  enough and loosing executive management support
• They need to think overall risk and influence OHS
  throughout culture programs
• Organisations need strategies to compensate for
  higher salaries e.g.
• OHS graduate programs, and
• OHS Contracts mentoring programs
• Focus on long term, rather than short term
  solutions

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Key strategies employed to deal with HSEC skill
shortages

• Its time to skill!! Think safety culture!! Think
  organisational risk!!
• Safety must be seen as a real value and
  organisations must not compromise
• Integrating Risk Management, Quality, Safety,
  Environment Community into business planning
• Job customisation, Internal OHS succession
  planning
• Outsourcing OHS project management, OHS Graduate
  programs
• OHS Contractor/Mentor programs
• Embarking on International recruitment drives in
  conjunction with Governments and niche
  recruitment providers.

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Strategies for coping with growth

• Training more safety representatives
  operational level input to safety management
• Collaboration with government, service providers
  tertiary units
• Identifying university graduates
• Sponsorship of o/s graduates and practioners
• Offering existing staff OHS courses/education
  programs
• Think outside the square, multi-skilling, cross
  training from other disciplines.

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What this means for HSEC Professionals

• Quality candidates are relocating on a global
  basis
• Employers must pay their best employees well to
  retain them
• Huge pressure on OHS systems and processes
• More QA on OHS strategies
• Think overall risk management. Not just
  descriptive OHS strategies

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What this means for HSEC Professionals

• Higher salaries
• Be more open to contracting flexible working
  arrangements to secure the best OHS professionals
• Contractor training for existing employees
• Be prepared to look outside Australia and
  consider sponsoring overseas OHS specialists
• Use FIFO/contracting as a short term OHS
  mentoring option
• Mentoring programs for new graduates.

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How organisations are combating the long-termOHS
HSEC skills shortage

• They accept the new reality the market, not the
  company will ultimately determine the movement of
  your employees
• Managing OHS retention in the past was like
  tending a dam. Today its like managing a river.
  The object is not to stop flow, but to control
  direction and speed (Source Harvard Business
  Review - Finding and Keeping the best people)
• Convincing OHS teams that youre serious about
  career programs not just performance management
• Electronic OHS career centres are being adopted
  for regional OHS professionals
• Visible support for OHS from management is
  crucial

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Conclusion

• Be aware of the market conditions
• Move quickly when the right candidate presents
• Dont be promoted or promote OHS professionals
  too quickly to fill a gap (walk before you can
  run)
• Be flexible in either full-time or contract
  arrangements
• Think about the long-term not short-term benefits
• Think overall OHS culture
• The best way to convince management and thus gain
  support for OHS is to present a financial
  cost/benefit analysis

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Questions

• Wilson People Management Pty Ltd
• Adelaide [phone]
• Perth [phone]
• www.wilsonpeople.com